DID he fake his own death?
The disappearance of inmate Angelo Cataroja from the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) remains a mystery for now as there is no conclusive proof yet that the remains found inside a septic tank in the NBP’s maximum-security compound are his.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla yesterday said he was victimized by “fake news” when he announced last month that the remains found inside a septic tank were that of Cataroja.
“Na-fake news po ako na nahanap ang katawan na putol ang ulo, ‘yun po ang unang sinabi sakin na dumating po sa aking feed (I was victimized by fake news that a headless body was found, that was the first thing that was said to me, the first feed that came),” Remulla told the House committee on public order and safety’s motu proprio hearing.
Cataroja was reported missing last July 15, prompting Bureau of Corrections Director General Gregorio Catapang Jr. to ask for assistance from the Philippine Coast Guard and the National Bureau of Investigation in identifying the remains found recently.
Remulla has said there could be two more mass graves in the maximum-security compound, in two more septic tanks, while another site may also yield more remains.
The justice secretary told his former House colleagues that the conclusion that the remains belonged to Cataroja was made after a sniffer dog ran to the septic tank after sniffing the inmates’ clothes.
Catapang also could not say if the inmate is still alive, saying he has decided to declare Cataroja missing until he is found dead or alive.
“So ang position ko ngayon, not unless na mabuksan ko lahat ‘yung septic tank, I will not declare na (dead). (So my position now is, unless we get to open all septic tanks, I will not declare that he’s dead,” he told panel chair Laguna Rep. Dan Fernandez. “Kung wala po (talaga) siya, saka namin ide-declare na nakatakas o AWOL (If he’s really not found, that’s when we’ll declare that he has escaped or AWOL).”
Only one of the three septic tanks has so far been opened as Remulla has ordered Catapang to seek the assistance of the University of the Philippines (UP) forensics team to ensure the preservation of conclusive evidence.
“Sa karanasan namin sa DOJ, ‘pag di mo pina-forensic anthropology or forensic archeology ‘yung lugar ‘di natin masasabi lahat ng nangyari, circumstances (In our experience in the DOH, when you don’t subject the place to forensic anthropology or forensic archeology, we can’t conclusively say what really happened, the circumstance),” Remulla explained when asked why the two other septic tanks have not been opened until now.
The revelations made before the panel prompted Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante to raise the possibility that Cataroja faked his own death with the help of some corrupt jail officers.
“Pwedeng pinawalan, pinalabas na patay or missing si PDL (person deprive of liberty) Cataroja (He could have been freed, making it appear that PDL Cataroja is dead or missing),” Abante said.
Catapang agreed to such a possibility but clarified that while there is indeed connivance among jail officers in committing acts of corruption, there was no indication that they conspired to help kill the inmate.
The BuCor chief said the bureau has sent a search and recovery team to Angono, Rizal, where Cataroja’s residence is located since his family was spotted riding a truck there.
He said another team was sent to Bicol to check if the inmate’s family and friends are there.
BuCor Deputy Director Angelina Bautista said that Cataroja has a history of going into hiding because he is mired in debt.
She said the items found in the septic tank were a piece of underwear and a bone that is still being examined by the NBI’s Forensic Unit to find out if they belong to Cataroja.
Cataroja was committed to the NBP on July 26, 2022 after he was sentenced 12 years to 20 years for violations of Presidential Decree 1612 or the Anti-Fencing Act Law. He has another pending case of carnapping before the Regional Trial Court Branch 71 of Antipolo City.
Also yesterday, Rep. Brian Yamsuan filed House Bill (HB) 8672 which seeks to create the of Department of Corrections and Jail Management (DCJM) to consolidate what he said is the country’s “fragmented correctional system.”
In his explanatory note to the measure, Yamsuan said creating the DCJM will “address the inherent flaws in the country’s correctional system,” such as the perennial high congestion rate in jails, limited resources, poor coordination among government agencies involved in penal management, and the abuse and corruption that has prevailed in the NBP and other penal facilities.
“By centralizing the oversight and management of prisons and jails and the rehabilitation of Persons Deprived of Liberty (PDLs) under a single department, the government can achieve greater efficiency and accountability,” said Yamsuan, who filed the bill last August 1.
He said centralizing the management of the corrections, jail management, and probations systems, would also “streamline resource allocation and budgeting,” which will then ensure that each penal facility would have adequate funding to support essential services that would contribute to better living conditions and a higher standard of care for PDLs.
Under HB 8672, the BuCor, which is currently under the DOJ; the BJMP of the Department of Interior and Local Government; the correctional and jail services of the provincial governments; the Board of Pardons and Parole (BPP); and the Parole and Probation Administration (PPA) will be placed under the DCJM.
