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Tuesday, October 09, 2004
Tan RP cohorts traced: officials
By Rose Versoza and Garry Cabotaje
CEBU CITY -- Calvin de Jesus Tan, the alleged shabu lab financier, has more than 20 local drug contacts in the Philippines, including those based in Cebu where lawmen busted a huge operation, said Rep. Antonio Cuenco.
Although Tan, whose Philippine passport was canceled Friday, did not name his cohorts, Cuenco (Cebu City, south) is confident they can be unmasked soon with the help of the Hong Kong Government.
Cuenco said the "evidence" Hong Kong police got from Tan could help a lot in determining the local drug contacts and financiers of the mega shabu lab in Mandaue City.
These include Tan's cellular phones, paper documents, SIM cards and ledger books, detailing the financial expenses of the drug operations in the country, he said.
Cuenco, Supt. Ager Ontog Jr. of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) 7 and the Philippine Consul General in Hong Kong talked with Tan at the Loi Chi Kok Correction Center for more than and hour and obtained from him valuable information last Thursday.
"He has lots of vital information but it's premature yet to reveal these. I'm confident that it can boost the conviction of the drug suspects in Mandaue, Cuenco said in a mobile phone interview Friday.
The Mandaue City Regional Trial Court (RTC) ordered Friday the cancellation of the Philippine passport of Tan, who is also charged along with 11 men for the manufacture of illegal drugs.
During the hearing, RTC Branch 28 Judge Marilyn Lagura Yap agreed with the city prosecutors and PDEA that the serious nature of Tan's offense and the huge amount of seized drugs are "reasonable grounds" for the cancellation.
The court, though, denied the two motions filed by lawyer Daryll Amante relating to the validity of the search warrant used during the raid and the return of the personal belongings of the accused.
Aware of the difficulty being faced by government agencies in disposing large quantity of shabu and chemicals, Judge Yap gave PDEA seven days more to implement her order.
PDEA legal consultant Paul Oaminal told the court that PDEA, the Department of Health and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources have yet to agree on the safe disposal of the shabu and chemicals seized from the warehouses-turned-shabu labs in Umapad and Paknaan.
Also, the court directed the City Prosecutor's Office to conduct a preliminary investigation on the 11 suspected illegal drug manufacturers who were arrested during the raid in Umapad last Sept. 24.
It is not clear, though, whether it will be the Mandaue prosecutors or a special panel of prosecutors from Manila who would be handling the investigation.
The justice department has formed a panel to handle the drug case against Tan, Joseph Yu, Hung Chin Chang, Allan Yap Garcia, Siew Kin Weng, Liew Kam Song, Lin Li Ku, Bao Xiafu, Wu Tiao Yi, Tao Fei, Liu Bo and Joseph Lopez are facing a case for manufacture of illegal drugs.
Yu, along with Garcia and Hung, is now being represented by lawyer Cornelius Gonzalez. Lopez is being represented by lawyer Allan Legaspi.
The court said it will just be presumed that Amante, who was not present during the hearing, will be representing the other accused.
Cuenco and Ontog, meanwhile, are pursuing the return of Tan, who allegedly gave P5 million to finance the shabu lab in Umapad where 150 liters of liquefied shabu, 400 to 500 kilos of chloro-ephedrine and equipment were seized.
In seeking the cancellation of Tan's passport, Oaminal told the court that Tan's case for drug possession before the Hong Kong court is bailable, so there is danger that in the event he is released, he will evade arrest by Philippine law enforcers.
Oaminal noted that the warrant of arrest issued by the Mandaue RTC cannot be served in Hong Kong because we have no territorial jurisdiction there.
Oaminal said the remedy would be to cancel his passport and to deport him to the Philippines for being an undocumented alien.
Upon his return, the warrant can then be served on him.
Although the Revised Administrative Code states that a passport may only be cancelled by reasons of public security, public safety and public health, Judge Yap agreed with Oaminal's observation that the nature of the offense Tan is facing in the Philippines and the quantity of illegal drugs pose a threat to public security.
Cuenco faxed a copy of his three-page handwritten note stating that Tan "is in good physical and mental condition and is accorded his rights as a detention prisoner."
Both Cuenco and Ontog flew to Hong Kong Wednesday to persuade Hong Kong authorities for an early return of Tan to the Philippines.
Cuenco said the 29-year-old Tan, who hails from Cabanatuan City, also several has lot properties in the Philippines.
Cuenco and Ontog also met with the assistant commissioner and staff of Hong Kong Customs and Excise as well as the Hong Kong-based US Drug Enforcement Agency.
"This exchange is not only for intelligence and investigation purposes but also for evidentiary purposes as well. I am amazed how closely law enforcement agencies from different countries work to crack a case," he said.
With these bits and pieces of information obtained from Tan and Hong Kong authorities, Cuenco believes they would "unravel the mystery of the Mandaue clandestine laboratory and bring to light the real heads of this organization to face the bar justice in our country."
Cuenco said that they even signed a mutual legal assistance agreement with Hong Kong solely for this case.
Hong Kong authorities has advised the Philippine Government to immediately file a formal request, through its Consul General's Office, that Tan be sent back home to face the drug manufacturing charges in Mandaue City. (With KNR)
(October 9, 2004 issue)
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