Marcelino in legit anti-drug ops, NBI letter to DOJ says

MANILA, Philippines – After Marine Lt. Col. Ferdinand Marcelino failed to give a tell-all testimony about his presence in a drug-bust operation, a letter from the National Bureau of Investigation proving that he was working with the agency in operations against illegal drugs was submitted to  the Department of Justice on Monday.

In the letter, it was indicated that Marcelino provides big help for information regarding the operations against the manufacture, sale and distribution of illegal drugs. It added that Marcelino was indeed working against illegal drugs as he remains to be participating in the anti-illegal drugs operations of NBI.

The letter dated Jan. 26, 2016, five days after Marcelino was arrested in a drug raid in Sta. Cruz was addressed to Prosecutor General Claro Arellano.

It was initially mentioned during the hearing last week but was only submitted by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) on Monday.

Marcelino was supposed to divulge the reason why he was present at the shabu storage facility in Manila in a raid last January. However, instead of a testimony, the accused urged the Philippine National Police-Anti-Illegal Drugs Group (PNP-AIDG) and the PDEA to undergo polygraph test due to the alleged discrepancies in the details presented by the camp of the arresting officers and his camp about the arrest made against him during the Monday hearing.

Reports said the PNP-AID and the PDEA refused to follow Marcelino’s motion. Senior Deputy State Prosecutor Theodore Villanueva cited that the result of the polygraph test is not considered as conclusive evidence.

Meanwhile, the DOJ asked Marcelino to submit his rejoiner-affidavit until March 9, Wednesday.

Marcelino and Chinese national Yan Yi Shou were nabbed last January in a suspected drug laboratory in Manila 64 kilos of suspected shabu with a street value of P256 million were confiscated by the authorities.

RELATED: No Marcelino tell-all on drug raid