Tanim-bala eyewitness backs extortion charges vs 3 airport personnel

MANILA, Philippines - An eyewitness has supported the extortion charge against three airport personnel done on an elderly couple in the latest case of bullet planting, or tanim-bala, at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).

In a two-page sworn affidavit submitted to the Department of Justice (DOJ), Maria Fe Balagot said she witnessed X-ray screeners Ferdinand Morales and Fatti Dame Go from the Office for Transportation Security (OTS) and wheelchair attendant Niño Namba allegedly conspired in an attempt to extort P50,000 from Esteban and Salvacion Cortabista at the departure area of the NAIA last April 19.

Balagot, niece of the Cortabistas, said she was with the couple when the incident happened. They were supposed to fly with her to the United States to seek treatment for severe arthritis.

The witness said the discovery of the bullet came as a surprise because it was not detected in the first X-ray at the entrance of the airport.

She recalled hearing the amount supposedly being demanded by the airport personnel immediately after the bullet was found in one of their hand-carry bags at the X-ray area.

“I heard the male operator in the X-ray say ‘Mahina ang P50,000 dyan (P50,000 is a small amount for that),’ and then the female operator replied, ‘Kung ako sa kanila magbigay na lang sila kesa madelay pa ’yung flight (If I were them, they should just pay instead of their flight being delayed),” Balagot said in the statement she subscribed before the Office of the Consul General in Los Angeles, California last April 26.

As for Namba, she said she saw him gesturing with Morales and Go, which she took as a sign of conspiracy.

Balagot recalled that she could not hide her frustration upon seeing her relatives being held by airport police and treated like criminals.

“That’s when I started crying and shouted, ‘Wala talaga kayong pinipiling bibiktimahin. Di na kayo naawa. Wala kaming pera! wala kaming pera! (You really have no consideration in choosing your victims, you have no mercy. We don’t have money! We don’t have money!)’,” she added.

The Cortabistas are facing preliminary investigation for violating Republic Act No. 10591 (Comprehensive Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act) in the DOJ. They are expected to appear at a hearing on May 3.

The couple was barred from boarding Korean Airlines flight KE 622 bound for Los Angeles via Seoul last April 19 after OTS personnel found a live .38-caliber bullet in one of their hand-carry bags at the departure area of NAIA Terminal 1.

They denied owning the bullet and insisted it was planted by airport personnel.

The couple filed robbery by extortion charges against the three airport personnel before the Pasay City Prosecutor’s Office earlier this week.