Category: Illegal Drugs

CA rejects habeas corpus petition of Alabang boys

Published by Ellen on February 2, 2009

by Evangeline de Vera
Malaya

The Court of Appeals yesterday affirmed the legality of the continued detention of the so-called Alabang Boys despite a prosecution panel’s recommendation to dismiss the drug charges filed against them.

In denying the petition for habeas corpus of Richard Brodett, Joseph Tecson and Jorge Joseph, the CA said preliminary investigations of the Department of Justice have not been concluded, citing the requirement that the recommendation be approved by Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez.

The three remain in the custody of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency which caught them in buy-bust operations in Quezon City and Muntinlupa in September last year.

Signing official documents on a holiday

Published by Ellen on January 27, 2009

Prosecutor John Resado sinks himself deeper . The more he talked the more that his story becomes incredible.He admitted to making a P800,000 deposit on the day he finalized the resolution dismissing the case against Brodett, Tecson and Joseph and ordering their release,

The date of the resolution was Dec. 2, 2008. Information tipped to the National Bureau of Investigation said Resado and his wife deposited separately two P800,000 in a bank in Bacoor, Cavite. He admitted only to one P800,000 which he said came from their money-lending business. He said the deposit had nothing to do with the resolution.

To stress the disconnect between the Dec. 2 resolution and the Dec. 2 deposit, Resado said he actually signed the resolution on Dec. 1.

Resado forgot to check his calendar. Dec. 1, a Monday, was declared by Gloria Arroyo a non-working holiday to observe Andres Bonifacio day which fell on a Sunday.

Magsabi na lang kasi ng totoo, ano.

Prosecutor declines to open bank accounts

Blancaflor deposits P2.6 million on the day he talked with Marcelino re Alabang Boys

Published by Ellen on January 26, 2009

Update: Blancaflor waves right to bank secrecy;allows his bank account to be examined.

Secretary Blancaflor’s statement on the alleged P2.6 million deposit:

Feb 26 2008 Applied loan as co-borrowers, Ricardo Alejandro Blancaflor and Mercedes Kathryn Yap (then fiancée). Paid Php 2.1M as downpayment which is 30% of Php 7M.

April 30 2008 Two loan documents were made when the loan was approved. One loan was covered by PN No 174514000507803 in the amount of Php 3,220,232.00. Monthly amortization is P36,195.31 starting June 1, 2008.

Sabotaging anti-illegal drugs campaign

Published by Ellen on January 25, 2009

Updates:
Arroyo called up Santiago on Palparan.

Golez wants Resado probed.

I would not be surprised if the idea to appoint retired general Jovito Palparan, known as the “butcher”, to an anti-illegal drugs body, came from Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez.

That would be the surest way to discredit the anti-illegal drugs campaign and lose the cooperation of the civilian community. It’s a stroke of genius that only one with a mind so malevolent could think of.

That it was apparently accepted by Gloria Arroyo, who crowned herself anti-drug czar for two weeks, raises questions if she is still in control of the government.

Prosecutor probed on P800,000 bank deposit

Published by Ellen on January 22, 2009

Updates:

Golez wants Resado probed.
Resado resorts to the classic strategy: when trapped, create confusion.
At the House hearing Friday, Resado claimed he was offered a bride by PDEA lawyer Alvaro Lazaro.

by Evangeline de Vera

Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez yesterday ordered the NBI to reopen its probe on John Resado, one of the state prosecutors who dismissed the drug charges against the so-called Alabang Boys after allegedly receiving bribe money.

Gonzalez asked the Anti-Money Laundering Council for advise over the bank deposits of Resado following the circulation of a one-page anonymous letter faxed to his office, and to NBI Director Nestor Mantaring and ABS-CBN news anchor Ces Drilon.

The letter sender, signed “Juan dela Cruz,” claimed that he has personal knowledge of the alleged P800,000 deposit to the joint account of Resado and his wife Rowena in Banco de Oro (BDO) in Bacoor, Cavite.

Sige, Raul G, magkalat ka pa

Published by Ellen on January 21, 2009

raul-g-ang-gma

Natawa ako sa reaction ni Rep. Roilo Golez sa rekomendasyon ng Integrated Bar of the Philippines na suspindihin ang justice secretary ni Gloria Arroyo na si Raul Gonzalez.

Sabi ni Golez, dahil sa rekomendasyon ng IBP, dapat ng mag-resign si Gonzalez dahil yan ay galing sa kapwa niya abogado. Hindi lang magiging mababa ang paningin sa knayna gpagkatao, pati na rin ang posisyon.

Inulit ni Golez, na kababayan ni Gonzalez (pareho silang Ilonggo), ang kanyang panawagan na ang natira na lamang na marangal na alternatibo para sa kanya ay mag-resign.

The Marine who said “No”

Published by Ellen on January 19, 2009

By Ellen Tordesillas
VERA Files

The soldier who stirred a hornet’s nest by accusing Department of Justice officials of bribery in the so-called “Alabang Boys” case could have been a millionaire by now.

Marine Maj. Ferdinand Marcelino, chief of the Special Enforcement Service of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, has experienced being bribed by smugglers, politicians and drug dealers in his 14-year career as a military officer.

But Marcelino, who belongs to the Philippine Military Academy Class of 1994, said he has made it a point to give back the thick envelopes stuffed with cash, and was not even curious enough to count the money and see how much he is worth.

Interagency feud weakens anti-drug campaign

Published by Ellen on January 19, 2009

By VERA Files

(Conclusion)

Last Jan. 13, President Arroyo proclaimed herself the country’s anti-drug czar, stepping into the feud between the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and the Department of Justice over the “Alabang Boys,” the three young men arrested and detained for illegal drug pushing and who allegedly tried to bribe their way to freedom.

Except for ordering DOJ officials and prosecutors to go on leave, Arroyo has kept mum on the charges of bribery, inefficiency and conflicts of interest that were exchanged between prosecutors and antinarcotics officials and agents. Her move has resulted in an uneasy peace between warring agencies that are supposed to work closely together in the anti-drug effort.

“The anti-drug campaign requires a united front, a harmonious relationship with other agencies,” a senior police official said. But he lamented that the attacks on both the PDEA and DOJ have “destroyed institution(s), including those who are innocent.”

Law enforcers say there has been a long running feud, with antinarcotics agents frustrated at the frequency with which prosecutors drop charges against suspects, and prosecutors complaining that law enforcers fail to build cases strong enough to stand up in court. Judges have also been accused of acquitting known drug lords.

As “shabu” price rises, Ecstasy use up

Published by Ellen on January 19, 2009

By VERA Files

(First of two parts)

The trade in crystal methamphetamine hydrochloride or “shabu” in the Philippines has grown into a P1 billion-a-day industry, but the drug has now become more expensive, making it “the poor man’s cocaine no more,” antinarcotics officials and international drug reports said.

The price of shabu has doubled to between P8,000 and P10,000 per gram since law enforcers dismantled several “mega-laboratories” in 2006 and 2007.

But government successes in curbing shabu production have been offset by another problem: Users are now turning to the amphetamine-type stimulant Ecstasy, which sells for P750 to P800 per tablet, and cocaine, which sells for P2,500 per gram, the kinds of drugs that were seized from “Alabang Boys” Richard Brodett, Jorge Joseph and Joseph Ramirez Tecson by agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in a drug-bust operation last September.

NBI clears prosecutors, says Marcelino obstructed probe

Published by Ellen on January 19, 2009

Related story: Arroyo gags PDEA regional official

by Evangeline de Vera
Malaya

The National Bureau of Investigation has submitted its report to the Department of Justice clearing state prosecutors implicated in the bribery scandal involving the so-called “Alabang Boys.”

But the NBI, which is under the justice department, found basis to charge Marines Maj. Ferdinand Marcelino with obstruction of justice for refusing to appear before its investigators.

Marcelino, head of the Special Enforcement Services of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, led buy-bust operations in September last year, which resulted in the arrest of Richard Brodett, Joseph Tecson and Jorge Joseph.