Convict Sebastian willing to tell all on NBP drug trade

MANILA, Philippines - After surviving the riot last Wednesday at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP), high-profile inmate Jaybee Sebastian has changed his mind and now agrees to spill the beans on illegal drug operations at the national penitentiary.

Lawyer Eduardo Arriba said Sebastian has agreed to cooperate with the investigation into the riot but on one condition – he would only talk with President Duterte.

“He said he has a lot of knowledge about the drug trade inside and outside the NBP. He initially refused to talk simply because of fear for his life,” Arriba said.

Sebastian, according to Arriba, has decided to cooperate with the government, believing that the stabbing incident that authorities initially branded as a “riot among inmates” could be related to the ongoing investigation on the illegal drug trade.

Sebastian is confined at the Muntinlupa Medical Center after sustaining stab wounds during the riot.

A high-profile Chinese drug lord was killed and four other inmates, including Sebastian, were injured.

“What happened to me is what I’ve always feared,” Arriba quoted Sebastian as saying.

“He said he would only speak about it (drug trade in the NBP) with the President. He said he wanted to speak directly to the President because he is now exposed to danger,” Arriba said.

Arriba said the riot was actually an assassination attempt against Sebastian.

He said Sebastian was attacked from behind but was able to evade and scuffle with the assailant armed with an ice pick.

Sebastian had identified the attacker as a certain Thomas, an inmate of Building 14.

Arriba said he would move to have Sebastian transferred to another building for his security.

Vital asset

Sebastian has been summoned by the House of Representatives in its inquiry on the proliferation of illegal drugs from the NBP. He is scheduled to appear in the hearing on Oct. 5.

But Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said earlier this week that Sebastian, convicted of robbery, would no longer be presented after the inmate refused to testify on the NBP drug trade.

In earlier House hearings, other high-profile inmates led by Herbert Colanggo have accused Sebastian of raising funds from illegal drug trade in the national penitentiary to support the campaign of Sen. Leila de Lima for the elections last May.

Arriba confirmed Sebastian does not want to speak on the issue before Congress.

He further explained Sebastian would not want to earn the ire of several officials of the previous administration who could be tagged in the controversy.

Arriba refused to elaborate, but hinted that Sebastian’s testimony would put to waste the supposed explosive testimonies of earlier witnesses.

However, Arriba would not confirm if Sebastian was indeed a government asset as earlier claimed by De Lima.

Arriba added that he would request the Department of Justice (DOJ) to transfer Sebastian to another prison after his release from hospital.  

The DOJ, for its part, wants to dig deeper into the incident.

DOJ Undersecretary Reynante Orceo said there is a need to wait for results of the investigation being spearheaded by the police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) after two high-profile inmates involved in the riot gave conflicting versions of the incident.

“We cannot make a conclusion at this point yet because we still have raw data. We have to verify and investigate further since there are apparently two versions coming out,” Orceo said.

Officials said the riot broke out after an inmate reprimanded three Chinese drug convicts who were using shabu.

NBP officials, however, said there were no traces of shabu or any drug paraphernalia at the scene.

Because of the conflicting versions, Orceo said they would subject the Chinese inmates to a drug test and also check the CCTV footage inside the facility where new signal jammers were installed last Tuesday.

“There will be drug testing of the inmates to determine if there was really drug session at that time. We will then know which version is more credible,” he said.

Orceo also bared that the probe would look into possible links of the stabbing incident to the ongoing congressional inquiry into the illegal drug trade in the NBP.

“This incident happened when there are indications that these inmates will testify before the House inquiry. Maybe it is coincidence or maybe there is something or someone behind it. We have to be careful about it so the public will not speculate,” Orceo said.

Aguirre had tasked the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to probe the incident.

Aguirre vowed to look deeper into the incident – especially after Arriba claimed the attack on Sebastian was unprovoked.

Lawmakers led by Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali, chairman of the House committee investigating the illegal drug trade at NBP, noted the riot occurred even while the police Special Action Force (SAF) commandos have secured the facility.

Congressional leaders wanted to know how drugs were sneaked into the NBP despite assurances by the SAF that the prison has been freed of contraband, including illegal drugs that are the subject of inquiry.

Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa defended the SAF, saying the entry of contraband has been greatly reduced or stopped altogether.

He admitted though that some weapons or drug supply were sneaked in before the SAF came in and may still be hidden inside the prison facility.

“We must accept we cannot (control all), we cannot inspect Building 14 inch by inch… otherwise, we might as well just close it and transfer them to another facility,” Dela Rosa said.

Dela Rosa commended the SAF for its quick response to the riot and saving the lives of those injured.

Dela Rosa had tasked the CIDG and SAF to take over the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) in the investigation of the incident.

BuCor chief Rolando Asuncion said all the evidence initially gathered by his investigators would be turned over to the CIDG. – Perseus Echeminada, Giovanni Nilles, Evelyn Macairan, Ghio Ong, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Robertzon Ramirez