Drug convict freed after 11 years in prison

MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court (SC) has freed a man convicted for selling a sachet of shabu after spending 11 years in prison.

In a recent ruling penned by Associate Justice Marvic Leonen, Siegfred Cabellon, a resident of Barangay Bulacao, Talisay, Cebu, was ordered released, saying the prosecution failed to sustain his conviction for the alleged sale of illegal drugs.

Cabellon, who was reportedly arrested in a drug sting on April 13, 2006, was sentenced to life imprisonment and ordered to pay a fine of P500,000.

In his appeal, Cabellon said the supposed drug deal was not proven as the prosecution failed to present the anti-drug operative who posed as a buyer and the sachet of shabu that he reportedly sold.

“A noticeable gap existed in the chain of custody with the prosecution’s failure to present evidence that the seized sachet was actually marked by any of the...apprehending officers,” the SC ruling read.

”The prosecution failed to present evidence that the...subject of the sale was inventoried and photographed in the presence of accused and others,” it added. – GN Nilles, Mylen Manto/The Freeman