Security beefed up in Southern Tagalog following NPA raid

BATANGAS CITY – In the aftermath of the daring attack on the Quezon provincial jail, local officials in the Southern Tagalog region ordered their respective police directors to beef up security in their jails.

Batangas Gov. Vilma Santos-Recto said she immediately initiated a meeting with the police provincial director and ordered tighter security in the provincial jail to prevent the possibility of another attack.

“Aside from our present (jail personnel) manpower, I placed an additional security force from our Provincial Public Order and Safety Services (PPOS),” Recto said.

Recto though did not elaborate on the additional number of personnel deployed at the Batangas provincial jail for security reasons.

She said though that the provincial jail has two suspected communist New People’s Army (NPA) guerrillas detained.

Laguna Gov. Teresita “Ningning” Lazaro also ordered tighter security measures in the provincial jail.

Laguna provincial government spokesperson Chris Sanji said they have already transferred some of the inmates to a bigger jail facility in Sta, Rosa and Calamba to decongest the provincial jail following the jailbreak in Biñan where 16 inmates escaped.

Cavite police director Senior Superintendent Hernando Zafra said Gov. Ayong Maliksi also ordered tighter security measures in the Cavite provincial jail.

“Upon learning what happened in Quezon jail, Governor Maliksi called me up and instructed me to conduct a security survey in our provincial jail,” Zafra said.

Zafra said all chiefs of police and their counterparts in the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (PNP) in the province were tasked to come up with recommendations and exchange intelligence reports to thwart any imminent NPA attacks on jail facilities.

“We are strengthening not only our provincial jail but also our local police detention cell by conducting regular consultations with the BJMP and the local police jailers,” Zafra said.

On Saturday, communist guerrillas, disguised as government anti-narcotics agents, infiltrated the provincial jail in Lucena City in Quezon and freed seven of their comrades being held for murder and rebellion.

Police said 30 heavily armed NPA rebels initially introduced themselves as agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) before entering the Quezon Provincial Jail.

The rebels, who were all dressed in black uniforms with PDEA and SWAT markings emblazoned on their shirts, managed to surprise the jail guards before disarming them and locking them up.

The rebels then proceeded to spring out their comrades in a 15-minute attack without firing a shot.

But two policemen and two civilians were wounded after the rebels threw a hand grenade in the attempt to evade the pursuing lawmen.

Quezon Gov. Rafael Nantes immediately ordered the relief of provincial jail warden Archimedes Mortiz and deputy warden Maximo Manalo for security lapses in the provincial jail.

The PNP Calabarzon regional police, on the other hand, created a fact-finding committee to investigate the jailbreak.

Chief Superintendent Rodolfo Magtibay, Deputy Regional Director for Administration of the PNP Calabarzon, said the committee would recommend possible administrative sanctions against the police and jail officials for the security lapses that allowed the jailbreak at the Quezon provincial jail. –With Michelle Zoleta