By Jonathan Hicap The camp of detained Sen. Leila de Lima had asked a Muntinlupa court to charge the government’s 13 witnesses as co-accused in a drug case she is facing. Senator Leila de Lima
(REUTERS/Romeo Ranoco / MANILA BULLETIN) In a motion filed before the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branch 256, De Lima’s lawyers said the prosecution witnesses that should be included in the case are prisoners Jojo Baligad, Herbert Colanggo, Engelberto Durano, Noel Martinez, Jaime Patcho, German Agojo, Hans Antonio Tan, Peter Co, Joel Capones, Vicente Sy, Rodolfo Magleo and Froilan Trestiza, and Reynante Diaz, talent manager of Colanggo. Boni Tacardon, De Lima’s legal counsel, said the witnesses should be charged since they admitted being involved in drug trading. “Gawin nang akusado dahil malinaw naman sa mga testimonya nila na sila ay involved sa drug trading. Kung kami'y dinedemanda ng conspiracy to commit drug trading, dapat kasama sila. Sila yung nagbebenta ng droga, inamin nila. Dapat siguro kasama sila sa kaso,” he said. De Lima attended on March 6 the resumption of the trial for case 17-167 now being handled by the Muntinlupa RTC Branch 256 under Judge Amelia Fabros-Corpuz. The trial was held at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) courthouse in Muntinlupa. The case charges De Lima and six others of conspiracy to commit illegal drug trading during her time as justice secretary. Her co-accused are former Bureau of Corrections director Franklin Bucayu, Joenel Sanchez, Ronnie Dayan, Wilfredo Elli, prisoner Jaybee Nino Sebastian and Jose Adrian Dera. Elli and Dera are at large. According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), which filed the case, from March 2013 to May 2015, the accused used NBP inmates to sell and trade dangerous drugs using mobile phones and other electronic devices, and received P70 million. The DOJ originally filed charges of illegal drug trading in February 2017 but changed it to conspiracy to commit illegal drug trading in December 2017, which the court later allowed. De Lima maintained that she is innocent of the charges, saying she has not dealt or conspired with any of the government “witnesses in their self-confessed involvement in the illegal drug trade.” Last September, De Lima’s camp filed a motion with the court to disqualify 13 inmates as government witnesses, saying they were convicted of crimes involving moral turpitude. It was denied by the court but the defense filed a motion for reconsideration, which is still pending with the court. The disqualification was filed against Nonilo Arile, Baligad, Colanggo, Durano, Magleo, Sy, Tan, Trestiza, Co, Martinez, Capones, Agojo and Patcho, who are all serving sentences of reclusion perpetua at the NBP. The March 6 trial was suspended after the prosecution tried to present Diaz instead of Durano who was originally scheduled to appear as ordered by the court. “Kaso ngayon ang dinala nilang witness iba. So nagreklamo kami dahil naghanda kami para sa depensa ng aming mga kliyente na para sana kay Durano,” said Tacardon. In Durano’s affidavit and testimony at the House of Representatives in 2016, he alleged that he personally delivered P1.5 million to De Lima inside the NBP “office” of prisoner Sebastian in 2014. Judge Fabros-Corpuz barred the media from covering the trial. Last November, the Supreme Court ordered the Muntinlupa RTC to allow media in the courtroom for De Lima’s hearings. The next trial is set on March 20.