CORRECTIONS Director General Gregorio Catapang Jr. yesterday relieved from their posts the camp commander and a prison guard of the Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm in Occidental Mindoro following an attempt to smuggle contraband into the facility.
Ordered relieved were C/CInsp. Francisco Madrid, the camp commander, and CT/Insp. Edgar Laudencia.
Madrid and Laudencia are now being investigated by the BuCor Directorate for Personnel and Human Resource Development.
Catapang said the smuggling attempt was uncovered when a dump truck, bearing the plate number NAO 3283 and loaded with gravel and sand, parked suspiciously outside the perimeter of the SPPF Hospital.
He said that upon questioning, truck driver Rob Antaran claimed he had a permit supposedly signed by Madrid allowing him to deliver the materials inside the facility, which prompted the facility’s security team to tell him to proceed to the designated unloading area.
However, upon arrival at the area, the driver refused to unload the gravel and sand, citing a malfunction of the hydraulic system.
“Due to his persistent refusal to unload, he was brought to the visiting area near where the dump truck was parked for questioning, where he admitted that the load of gravel and sand contained hidden contraband,” Catapang said.
Recovered from the dump truck were 213 bottles of 1L Ginebra San Miguel, 48 bottles of 700ml Ginebra San Miguel, 16 bottles of 1L Jack Daniel’s Whiskey, 2 bottles of 700ml Jack Daniel’s Whiskey, 30 reams of Marlboro cigarettes with 10 packs per ream, 69 reams of tobacco with 10 packs per ream, 10 packs of tobacco with 6 bricks per pack, and 37 sticks of tobacco.
Catapang has also ordered an investigation to find out whether there other Bucor personnel were involved in the smuggle attempt.
