Rafael Ragos, former officer-in-charge of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), will testify at the drug trial of former senator Leila de Lima to affirm his recantation of his testimony against her.
Ragos will appear at the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branch 204 on Oct. 28, which will conduct a hearing on case No. 17-165.
The case accused De Lima and Ronnie Dayan, her former aide, of conspiracy to commit illegal drug trading that allegedly happened during her time as justice secretary.
Ragos is the key prosecution witness in the case and originally testified and executed affidavits that he delivered P10 million to De Lima’s house in Parañaque: P5 million on Nov. 24, 2012 and another P5 million on Dec. 15, 2012.
The money, he claimed, came from the proceeds of illegal drug trade at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa.
Case 17-165 is one of the three cases filed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) against De Lima in February 2017. One of the cases was dismissed by a Muntinlupa court last year.
Due to the cases, De Lima has been in detention for more than five years since February 2017.
Ragos executed an affidavit dated April 30 this year and recanted all his allegations against De Lima and Dayan.
“All of my allegations to the contrary in my affidavits and House and court testimonies are all fiction, false, and fabricated,” he said in his affidavit.
Ragos stated, “In an affidavit dated March, 2017, I stated that the money I delivered to Ronnie Dayan and Sec. De Lima on November 24, 2012 and December 2012 both amounted to five million pesos (P5,000,000.00) each and that the person who called me on the phone was Bilibid inmate Hans Tan who said that the money came from Peter Co and was Sec. De Lima's share in the drug trade.”
“I now hereby declare and make known to the whole world that there is no truth whatsoever to any of these affidavits or House and court testimonies, or any other statement made in the media or other investigatory proceedings, including the Senate and the DOJ, on the delivery of monies to Sec. De Lima or Ronnie Dayan in whatever amount,” said Ragos.
He added, “There was never any money delivered to my quarters. Even if there was, I would have immediately conducted an investigation and filed a case against the responsible individuals, instead of following the instructions of an unknown caller or Hans Tan to deliver a package like an ordinary messenger.”
“As far as I know and based on my professional relationship with Sec. De Lima, she is incapable of doing anything illegal, much less engage in the illegal drug trade or accept money from Bilibid inmates,” said Ragos.
The Muntinlupa RTC Branch 204 allowed Ragos to testify in the trial based on motion filed by Dayan, asking the court to recall Ragos to testify for his defense.
In a decision dated Oct. 18, the court denied the motion for reconsideration filed by government prosecutors who opposed the court’s order recalling Ragos to testify again.