Bilibid installs 36 more CCTVs to foil prison breaks

MANILA, Philippines — Days after a murder convict escaped from the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City over the weekend, the NBP said that it has installed more than 30 additional closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras inside the maximum security compound especially near fences and walls.

NBP Director Richard Schwarzkopf told the Philippine Daily Inquirer that they installed additional 36 CCTV cameras inside the maximum security compound especially near the walls and fences. He said they would add more than 100 throughout the entire NBP compound by 2016.

“These are the strategic areas where we placed the video-recording cameras to better monitor the inmates,” said the NBP director, adding that the maximum security compound had existing CCTV cameras but were located far from the walls of the facility.

Last weekend, convicted murderer Reynaldo Avergonzado escaped from Dorm 12-B of the maximum security compound and was believed to have used a rake and a rope to climb the walls of the facility.

The materials he allegedly used to scale the walls of the prison were found by NBP guards on Sunday afternoon but Schwarzkopf said they have not determined the exact day and time when Avergonzado bolted out of prison.

He said that in establishing how and when Avergonzado escaped, the NBP has asked prison guards, including officers of the day, tower guards and building keepers on duty from Saturday afternoon to Sunday afternoon, to explain within 10 days why the prison break happened on their watch.

Schwarzkopf said they have been carefully investigating to determine who should be held accountable for the escape.

Asked for an update on the manhunt for Avergonzado, the NBP director said that they were still trying to locate him, as ofThursday.

“We have already coordinated with other police stations and agencies to intensify our search for him,” he added.

The fugitive is a native of Bohol who has been detained at the NBP since 2009. He also reportedly escaped from the Bohol Provincial Jail but was recaptured.

Aside from installing additional CCTV cameras, Schwarzkopf said that he earlier released a memorandum cancelling the days off and the application for leaves of security personnel at the NBP.

“We also augmented the security team with people from other units,” he added.   The penitentiary has been on red alert even before the holiday season, he said.

The NBP has started implementing a biometrics system for prison visitors for the holiday season.  This requires family members to have a biometric scan and a valid identification card to be registered to the system before they can visit detainees.

The measure was said to have been set up for security reasons and to prevent smuggling of contraband.

“Many visitors flock to our facility during the Christmas season and it is also usual that some inmates plan to escape from prison during this time because they miss their families,” Schwarzkopf said.

But he noted that Avergondazo’s escape was the first in 2015 at the maximum security compound.  SFM