3 women nabbed at city jail: Shabu in genitals

CEBU, Philippines — They came into the Cebu City Jail to visit different inmates. They clocked in at different times. They also claimed not knowing one another.

But they were arrested for the same violation — illegal drugs stuffed in their private parts.

The three women — Estelia Orcullo, 44; Rosalina Baylosis, 33; and Tennie Olaño, 45 — all landed in jail after a security check at the male dormitory of the city jail in Barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City found them hiding drugs in their genitals yesterday morning.

Cebu City Jail warden Renante Rubio told The FREEMAN in a phone interview that the three suspects went inside the jail premises at an interval of a few minutes between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. yesterday.

As a standard operating procedure, female jail guards subjected them to a body search, which led to the discovery of some things stuffed in their genitals.

“Before mosulod sa jail facility, standard operating procedure nga moagi og body search. Nisulod sila sa searching room, gipahubo, gi-check ang genitals. Naay ni-protrude nga condom, and nakuha ang illegal items,” Rubio said.

Authorities then discovered illegal drugs wrapped in plastics and condoms stuffed into their lady parts.

Found from Olaño were 10 ampoules of Nubain; from Orcullo, a large pack of methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu; and from Baylosis, yet another smaller sachet of shabu and cigarettes.

According to Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-7 information officer Leia Albiar, Nubain is a brand of albuphine hydrochloride, which is one of the regulated drugs in the Philippines. In the medical practice, it is commonly used as analgesic or pain reliever.

“Gi-regulate siya kay prone to drug abuse, potent kaayo siya nga drug nga if gamiton without sakto nga prescription, possible ma- dependent ang tao,” said Albiar.

During interrogation, the three said they did not know one another. Orcullo claimed to be a resident of Barangay San Nicolas, Cebu City; Baylosis, of Barangay Carreta, Cebu City; and Olaño of Compostela town in northern Cebu.

Jail Officer 2 Bartolome Reasol, who is leading the investigation, said that during the check, the illegal drugs were seen protruding from the suspects’ genitals.

He said Nubain ampoules discovered from Olaño’s were packed in condoms, while the packs of shabu from Baylosis and Orcullo were placed in plastic bags.

Reasol said the shabu taken from the two women weighed a total of 101 grams with an estimated market value of P500,000.

He said that with the amount of drugs confiscated from the suspects, it did not appear that the same was meant for drug consumption only, hinting that it may be intended for sale inside the jail.

Olaño and Orcullo were supposed to visit their live-in partners, while Baylosis was supposed to see her sibling. The inmates they were all visiting are also detained for illegal drug cases.

However, Reasol did not disclose their names so as not to hamper the follow-up investigations that will be conducted by the PDEA-7.

Reasol said Baylosis had a previous record of attempting to sneak in cigarettes, which are considered contraband in the facility.

Asked about what sorts of information the suspects relayed to authorities, Reasol said they were uncooperative, and were apparently trying to hold back information out of fear for their lives.

But in an interview with GMA-7’s Balitang Bisdak, Orcullo claimed that she was only paid to take the drugs inside the jail.

As for Baylosis, she admitted that she was attracted to the promise of getting money in exchange for bringing the contraband into the facility. Because she needed money, she was left with no choice but to take it.

She added that she was promised to be paid once she succeeds in her task, though she declined to reveal how much.

Baylosis further revealed that the drugs were supposed to be sold inside. However, she did not divulge the name of the person she was supposed to give it to.

Yesterday, the suspects were brought to the Cebu City Medical Center for medical procedures before being taken to the Guadalupe Police Station for detention.

They will be face charges for possession of illegal drug substances, which falls under Section 11 of Republic Act 9165 or the Dangerous Drug Act of 2002.

Jail Chief Superintendent Arnold Buenacosa, director of Bureau of Jail Management and Penology in Central Visayas, said they have been strictly monitoring inmates and visitors after receiving tips from anonymous informants.

“We closely conducted our monitoring on inmates and dalaw. May mga taong nagtimbre sa amin, pati na nagdadala ng illegal items,” he said.

 However, he did not disclose if the three women were monitored beforehand.

“Ito pa ang resulta ng kampanya against sa pagpasok ng contraband sa loob ng facilities. Noon, may nabaril sa city jail. Kaya ito na naman po ang ginagamit nila, yung mga dalaw na babae, usually mga babae, para makapuslit sa loob ng facility,” Buenacosa said.

To recall, a man was killed while his cohort suffered from gunshot wounds after a jail officer at the city jail fired “warning shots” when the two attempted to sneak several packs of cigarettes into the building.

Buenacosa reiterated his warnings that those who still attempt to gatecrash contrabands will suffer the consequences.

He also urged the community to help by relaying relevant information about those who will try to bring in illegal items.

Buenacosa said greyhound operations are regularly conducted in Cebu City Jail, and so far, the last two operations have not yielded any form of illegal drugs, just cigarettes.

Persons caught sneaking in illegal items will be banned from visiting inmates for a couple of months, depending on the circumstances, according to Reasol. — JMD (FREEMAN)