No case vs CPDRC inmate who stabbed five detainees

CEBU, Philippines - No charges will be filed against the inmate who stabbed five other detainees, including a high-profile inmate, inside the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center, an official said.

Roberto Legaspi, acting CPDRC warden, said he met with Bienvenido “Jun” Noel who told him that he decided not to file a case against Vicente Tumangan.

“I just talked to (Bienvenido) Jun Noel this morning. He doesn’t want to file a case, ni-backed out sad. He’s not going to press charges anymore…He just doesn't want to create any more problems inside,” Legaspi said.

Noel, who has a murder case, was the one who reportedly got a special treatment from former jail consultant Marco Toral, who took him to a private hospital after injuring himself during a basketball game.

The other four inmates of the facility will not also press charges against Tumangan, 55, after the June 17 incident.

Tumangan is now confined in isolation and Legaspi said they are planning to transfer Tumangan to a jail facility in his hometown.

“He’s still in isolation; we’ll keep him there (for the mean time). Actually, we’re trying to move him out, I’m requesting from the judge to transfer nalang for the safety of their inmates. We’re looking into moving him to where his jurisdiction is,” Legaspi added. 

Tumangan reportedly stabbed five inmates using a four-inch nail and improvised scissors last June 17.

Legaspi, however, cannot confirm if Tumangan has a mental disorder.

Vice Governor Agnes Magpale had said that although the investigation is ongoing, personal grudge was the reported motive that escalated to a stabbing incident.

Drug Supplier

 Meanwhile, Legaspi has yet to confirm the report about another CPDRC inmate who was said to be the supplier of drugs to a man arrested in Barangay Maigang, Barili town on Tuesday.

“We will have to verify,” Legaspi said.

The Provincial Intelligence Branch of Cebu Provincial Police Office has arrested Rolando Escoreal, reportedly a high-value target for illegal drugs.  Based on the police investigation, Escoreal revealed that he got his drugs from a CPDRC detainee named “Rocky.”  Escoreal has an arrest warrant issued by Judge Jerry Dicdican of Regional Trial Court- Branch 25 in Danao City over his alleged involvement in illegal drugs.

A .45 caliber pistol, assorted magazines and live ammunition as well as 20 grams of suspected shabu worth P370, 000 and drug paraphernalia were confiscated during a raid conducted by police led by Senior Superintendent Joie Pacito Yape, chief of CPPO-PIB. (FREEMAN)