ILOILO City – The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) is facing an internal shakeup following a revelation that a jail officer may have served as a source of illegal drugs for a suspected high-level trafficking duo.
This twist emerged after the arrest of two high-value drug suspects in Barangay Balantang, Jaro district here during a major police operation that yielded P2.38 million worth of suspected shabu. But beyond the sizable haul of 350 grams, it was the suspects’ claim that their supply came from a BJMP officer assigned to the Dumangas, Iloilo district jail that shook the local BJMP.
“The BJMP Regional Office 6 will not hesitate to terminate and dismiss any personnel, regardless of rank if ever they are found to be involved in any illegal activities. We will not condone and let these erring personnel to remain in our ranks,” said Chief Superintendent Simeon Dolojo Jr., BJMP regional director, in a statement amid calls for greater transparency and internal cleansing.
BJMP-6 legal section chief Atty. Juniven Rey Umadhay added that the officer in question has been placed under “restricted status while reporting at the regional office,” pending the outcome of an internal probe now being spearheaded by their investigation and prosecution division.
Iloilo City Police Office director Colonel Kim Legada, who led the bust, said the suspects had been under surveillance for two months and were among seven drug-related targets apprehended in a single day — the most since he took command.
He also noted that while Iloilo City has seen a drop in drug influx following the massive P816-million shabu seizure in Mindoro last month, pockets of trafficking persist./PN
