ENSURE PROTECTION FOR INMATE WHO WITNESSED ESPINOSA SHOOTING--POE

Sen. Grace Poe today urged authorities for additional protection for an inmate who witnessed the predawn operation at the Leyte Sub-Provincial Jail that led to the killing of Albuera town Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr. and another inmate on Nov. 5.

Poe made the call in the light of reports that an inmate disputed the account of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) of the Philippine National Police that the slain mayor, who was detained on illegal drug charges, allegedly resisted and was engaged in a "firefight" with the raiding team.

Reports, however, indicated that the Albuera town mayor begged for his life and did not possess a firearm due to the strict security in prison, according to the inmate.

"I think that the jail inmate was the one who stated na narinig niya ang mayor na nagmakaawa o nagsabing wala naman siyang baril o kung anuman iyon. Nasaan ngayon, itong inmate kasi kailangan protektahan ito sapagkat ito ay isang saksi na maaaring magpatunay kung anuman ang ating iniimbestigahan dito," Poe said during the Senate inquiry led by the public order and dangerous drugs committee.

The senator also called for the possible transfer of the inmate, as she asked the Senate panel to invite the inmate to the next Senate hearing.

"Kasi alam naman natin na kapag sa probinsya nangyayari at doon mo rin itatago o doon mo rin ikukulong ay hindi talaga mapoprotektahan ang witness. Dapat national custody iyan," Poe said.

Leyte Provincial Jail Warden Homobono Bardillon told Senate probers that the inmate was still imprisoned at the Leyte Sub-Provincial Jail, and they need to secure clearance from the court handling the case of the inmate.

In questioning the manner of the police operation, Poe zeroed in on the highly irregular circumstances surrounding the raid, chief of which was the lack of closed circuit television (CCTV) footage even if Bardillon maintained that they have working CCTV recordings before the CIDG swooped into the Baybay jail.

"Ang nangyari po doon, merong naglagay in closed parenthesis na under repair [ang CCTV at hard drive]," Bardillon responded, adding that they were not the one who entered the entry in the jail's logbook and the CCTV was fresh from repair.

"'Yung CCTV namin po gumagana na. Gumana po iyon noon October 26 at October 27, ini-turn over ng gumawa. I have evidence na gumagana talaga ang CCTV namin... Merong hard drive, pero after ng raid nila [CIDG], wala na doon ," the warden said. ""From 3 a.m. until 11 in the morning, 'yung CIDG po ang may kontrol sa jails namin."

Chief Inspector Leo Laraga who led the raiding team, however, said they did not touch the CCTV camera in the jail but confirmed reports that jail personnel and four provincial policemen tasked to secure Espinosa were ordered to kneel and face the wall.

"Sinasabi ng jail warden na gumagana ang CCTV, pero sinasabi ninyo na wala kayong kinalaman sa pagkawala nito. So kailangan natin matunton sino may interes para itago iyan. Meron tayong mga witnesses na pumunta doon. 'Yung media witness na kasama, dapat mapatawag din dito para marinig ang kanyang salaysay dahil kung media siya, maaaring meron din siyang footage, malay ninyo kumuha siya dahil makita nga itong mga nakaplantang ito, kung pagdating ninyo ay nandoon na o na-planta lamang doon," said Poe.

CIDG Region 8 chief Superintendent Marvin Marcos, in his presentation, said the CIDG Region VIII raiding team "was able to enter the jail premises thru the use of Bolt cutter" to serve search warrants.

Chief Inspector Jovie Espenido, police chief of Albuera, Leyte, confirmed that the slain mayor signed an affidavit linking several personalities in the narcotics trade, including some personnel from the CIDG.

The slain mayor, father of known big-time drug dealer Kerwin lord in Eastern Visayas, was among those in the "narco-list" publicly released earlier by President Rodrigo Duterte.