Push Admin

Wives of PDL-witnesses vs De Lima complain of 'confidential' transfer to Sablayan jail

Article (news)

Mike Navallo, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="The New Bilibid Prison in this photo taken on November 14, 2022. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/news/07/28/20221114-bucor-117th-anniversary-jc4446.jpg"/><figcaption>The New Bilibid Prison in this photo taken on November 14, 2022. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA — The wives and relatives of some PDL-witnesses (persons deprived of liberty) who testified against detained former Senator Leila de Lima went to the Department of Justice on Monday to complain about the “confidential” transfer of their husbands to a jail facility in Sablayan in Occidental Mindoro.The wives of Noel Martinez and Jerry Pipino told the media they were not told about the transfer which took place Saturday night.Mrs. Pipino said she was with her husband on Saturday, as she was allowed a “stay-in” visit at the maximum security compound of the New Bilibid Prison (NBP), when her husband was summoned by BuCor personnel.“Nakita ko po asawa ko sa Gate 1, nakaposas na po sila. Isa-isa po sila,” she said.“Binibigyan ko po ng gamot, bawal daw po ipadala gamot,” she added. “Wala po silang dala na kahit ano. Sarili lang po talaga nila. Kung ano po yung suot nila, ayun lang po.”(I saw my husband at Gate 1. They were already handcuffed. I was supposed to give him but his medicines, but they stopped me. They were not allowed to bring anything.)The wives later learned their husbands were taken to Sablayan, Occidental Mindoro. Although they complained, no Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) personnel confirmed them the whereabouts of their husbands since they inquired at the NBP on Sunday, they said. “Pumunta po kami kahapon pa, Sunday pa. Wala po silang maipakitang papel sa amin na nagsasabing ililipat. Sabi confidential daw po. E paano po magiging confidential yun e hindi nga namin alam kung buhay pa sila o hindi e. Kasi wala po talaga e,” Mrs. Martinez said.(We went there on Sunday. They couldn&#x27;t give us any document on the transfer. They said it was confidential. We don&#x27;t even know if they&#x27;re still alive.)She said the 10 PDL-witnesses had already testified against De Lima in her last drug case and had just been returned to the NBP’s maximum security prison a month ago from their previous jail cells controlled by the military. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/28/23/court-affirms-de-lima-acquittal-in-2nd-drug-case">Muntinlupa court affirms De Lima’s acquittal in second drug case</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/12/23/huling-drug-case-ni-de-lima-ni-reraffle-matapos-mag-inhibit-2-judge">Huling drug case ni De Lima ini-raffle muli matapos mag-inhibit ang 2 judge</a></li></ul><div> </div>De Lima had questioned that arrangement made under then-Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II.“Noong nilipat nga sila sa maximum, katakot-takot na sulat pa yung galing dito sa DOJ, paglipat lang. Tapos ngayon, basta-basta na lang silang ililipat,” Mrs. Martinez said.(When they were transferred to the maximum security compound, there were so many documents. But now, they were simply moved.)“Yung pong 10 dinala nila sa Sablayan, mga legal po yun na mga witness ng gobyerno. Ang pagkakaalam po namin sir, under po sila ng WPP (Witness Protection Program). Bakit po sila itinapon sa Sablayan? Ang layo po nun sir,” she complained.(The 10 PDLs brought to Sablayan are legal government witnesses. Why will they be moved to Sablayan? That&#x27;s too far.)Sablayan is in an island to the south of mainland Luzon, about 260 kilometers from Manila.Mrs. Martinez identified the 10 PDL-witnesses transferred as:-Nonilo Arile, convicted for murder and kidnapping -Herbert Colanggo, convicted for robbery with homicide -Jaime Patio, convicted for kidnapping for ransom -Engelberto Durano, convicted for frustrated murder and murder -Rodolfo Magleo, convicted for kidnapping for ransom -Noel Martinez, convicted for kidnapping for ransom -Hans Anton Tan, convicted for robbery and direct assault with murder -Herman Agojo, convicted for illegal sale and delivery of methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu) -Thomas Dunena, convicted for murder -Jerry Pipino, convicted for kidnappingMost controversial among those transferred is Colanggo, a robbery group leader who became notorious for recording an album and a music video inside the NBP while serving a life sentence.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/11/21/22/de-lima-case-colanggo-says-wont-withdraw-testimony">De Lima case: Colanggo says won&#x27;t withdraw testimony</a></li></ul>He was part of Bilibid19, a group of PDLs with access to drugs, firearms and luxurious accommodations discovered during surprise inspections at the NBP led by then-Justice Secretary De Lima. The wives and relatives had hoped to talk to Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla when they went to the DOJ Monday but Remulla was not around.They were instead met by DOJ spokesperson Assistant Secretary Mico Clavano, who assured them their husbands were safe.“So inassure ko sila na yung mga asawa po nila ay nasa magandang kalagayan at siguro po ay hindi pa muna nilalabas ang rason dahil confidential pa po. Ang ating director general na si Director General Catapang ay napakabait na tao and siguro na-trauma lang po yung mga asawa ng mga PDL dahil iba po yung pamamaraan dati, dati pa. So I made sure to assure them na ito pong administration na ito ay iba at mas reformational na po ang philosophy natin dito. Hindi na po punitive no, kagaya ng mindset natin dati,” he said.“And I assured them na di naman po mandato ng BuCor at ng DOJ na saktan ang mga ano. That’s way way way beyond our ano, kung ano talaga ginagawa namin,” he added.(I assured them their husbands were well. Perhaps they were traumatized because of the old management style. I assured them this administration is different and our philosophy is reformational. The mindset is no longer punitive. It&#x27;s not the mandate of the BuCor and DOJ to hurt people.)Asked to confirm the exact whereabouts of the 10 PDL-witnesses, Clavano said he had yet to see the actual report but cited information coming from informal channels confirming that the PDL-witnesses were in the Sablayan prison.Clavano however declined to disclose why only 10 were transferred while 4 other witnesses against De Lima remained in the NBP’s maximum security compound.Mrs. Martinez identified the 4 PDL-witnesses as: -Peter Co, convicted for illegal sale and delivery of methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu) -Joel Capones, convicted for homicide -Jojo Baligad, convicted for murder -Froilan Trestesa, convicted for kidnapping“Well that’s a reason that I have to keep close first. Alam naman natin na kapag pwede kong sabihin, sasabihin ko naman talaga. It’s just that there are some things that have to be kept confidential to restore the order inside Bilibid. Kaya siguro we’ll just have to ask for their patience in finding this out,” he said.“I think their biggest concern was the health and security of their husband, which I have been able to address already. So, siguro we’ll have to wait for a later date,” he added.Clavano insisted there was nothing “sinister” about the transfer of the witnesses against De Lima.“I can assure everybody na lahat to deliberate, lahat to may rason, lahat to ay pinag-isipan talaga ng ating mga heads of the agencies and of the secretary. Kaya we can assure everybody that everything we do here, meron talagang purpose. And hindi naman namin basta-basta ginagawa yung mga ganitong transfer kung hindi talaga napag-isipan,” he explained.(These are all deliberate and were planned thoroughly by our heads of agencies.)Remulla last week confirmed the transfer of “drug convicts” from military facilities back to BuCor, which he said included witnesses against De Lima. But he did not mention plans to transfer some of them to Sablayan. The NBP had recently been rocked with a series of incidents — a fight between 2 PDLs, a shooting incident which injured 9 inmates, a stabbing incident which led to a PDL dead, and the recovery of a bone from a septic tank.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/video/news/07/31/23/some-bucor-men-allowing-entry-of-contraband-catapang">Some BuCor men allowing entry of contraband: Catapang</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/26/23/bilibid-under-red-alert-after-prison-fight-leaves-1-dead">Bilibid under red alert after prison fight leaves 1 dead</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/28/23/more-mass-graves-may-be-inside-bilibid-remulla">More mass graves may be inside Bilibid, says Remulla</a></li></ul>The justice department partly blamed congestion at the national penitentiary, which Clavano said is a 100-year-old facility built for 6,000 inmates which now houses 19,000 PDLs. As of December 2021, BuCor reported a congestion rate of 345% 28,642 PDLs housed in 33 buildings for 6,435 inmates. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/28/23/doj-to-suspend-entry-of-new-bilibid-inmates">DOJ to impose moratorium on entry of new inmates to Bilibid</a></li></ul><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2738202" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=2735920" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

Relatives of some PDL-witnesses who testified against ex-Sen. De Lima complained about the 'confidential' jail transfer of their husbands. 

Wives of PDL-witnesses vs De Lima complain of 'confidential' transfer to Sablayan jail

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

Sudoku

Word of the Day

Lotto

Horoscope

News

Wives of PDL-witnesses vs De Lima complain of 'confidential' transfer to Sablayan jail

Mike Navallo,

ABS-CBN News

Published August 01, 2023 08:08 AM PHT

Read More:

Bilibid

DOJ

PDL witnesses

inmate witnesses

Leila De Lima

last drug case

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2026 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.