By Martin Sadongdong
The Philippine National Police (PNP) urged the public Tuesday to be skeptical of the claims made by Peter Joemel Advincula, the man who introduced himself as "Bikoy," a mysterious figure who tagged President Duterte's family and close allies to the illegal drug trade.
This, after Police General Oscar Albayalde, PNP Chief, bared that Advincula was a former seminarian who was sentenced to six years of imprisonment in 2012 after being convicted of large-scale illegal recruitment in Bicol.
He said they immediately conducted a profiling on Advincula after he surfaced at the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) building in Ortigas, Pasig City on Monday afternoon.
"Lumalabas na itong tao na ito he was convicted for large scale illegal recruitment and he served for six years. Actually 10 years kung hindi ako magkamali 'yong sentence but it was shortened because of good behavior (It appears that this person was convicted for large scale illegal recruitment and he served for six years.
Actually the sentence was 10 years if I'm not mistaken but it was shortened because of good behavior)," Albayalde told reporters at Camp Crame in Quezon City.
"Ang charge niya doon sa Bicol pero nagserve siya sa Muntinlupa ng six years niya (All of his charges were in Bicol but he served his sentence in Muntinlupa)," he stated.
Aside from this, Advincula also has a standing case of estafa before the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Albayalde added.
The PNP Chief could not disclose further details on Advincula's illegal recruitment and estafa charges but he noted that investigators should be wary of the things the latter would say since he "has a knack for making people believe him through his words."
"Mukhang magaling siyang mang-estafa at magsalita. You could just imagine you would be charged for large scale recruitment. Ibig sabihin andami niyang naloko. Baka tunay na magaling siyang magsalita (It appears he is really good at speaking and fooling people. You could just imagine you would be charged for large scale recruitment. It means that he has fooled a lot of people. Maybe he really is good at speaking)," Albayalde stressed.
"We also found out he is a former seminarian kaya baka ginagamit niya rin 'yon para maloko 'yong tao (We also found out he is a former seminarian so he might be using that to fool the people)," he stated.
In his face reveal, Advincula admitted to being sentenced to six years due to estafa but he said he only served for four years - from 2012 to 2016 since he was cited for "good behavior."
An investigation has already been conducted to determine if Advincula was really the man behind the hooded figure in a five-part series dubbed as "Ang Totoong Narco-list," Albayalde said.
"Hindi naman natin dini-discredit si Bikoy. Number one, we really can't say if 'yong nagpakilala kahapon is the true Bikoy. Remember he showed himself nakamask. Hindi natin masabi na siya talaga 'yon. That has to be validated and confirmed na si Bikoy at si Mr. Advincula is one and the same person (We are not discrediting Bikoy. Number one, we really can't say if the man who surfaced is the true Bikoy. Remember he was masked We cannot say if indeed he's the one. Whether Bikoy and Mr. Advincula is one and the same person, that has to be validated and confirmed)," he emphasized.
The PNP will also assess the threat on the life of Advincula so that they can provide him with a security detail.
"He will have to undergo threat assessment. If we prove that there's a threat or his life is in danger, why not?" Albayalde said.
Advincula surfaced just days after the arrest of Rodel Jayme, the creator of a website which shared the "Ang Totoong Narco-list" videos.
In the videos, Advincula showed supposed proof of the involvement of Duterte's family and close allies in the illegal drug trade, including his children Paolo and Kitty, in-law Mans Carpio, and former aide Christopher Lawrence Go.