NBI men tagged in new extort case

MANILA, Philippines - Two months after the dismissal of National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) director Magtanggol Gatdula, several agents of the bureau have been implicated anew in another case of kidnapping and extortion.

Alma Valencia Yamaguchi, who is married to a Japanese, filed a complaint for robbery, illegal detention, kidnapping, grave coercion, trespassing and extortion before the Department of Justice (DOJ) against 14 officers and personnel of the NBI.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima ordered a preliminary investigation on Yamaguchi’s complaint against former NBI-Anti Graft Division chief

Allan Contado, NBI-Reaction Arrest and Interdiction Division (RAID) executive officer Gregorio Zuñiga, agents Fatima Liwalug, Bertrand Mendoza, Melvin Escruel, and Henry Canapi, and special investigators Joel Ottic and Nelson Saul.

Also included in the charge sheet were civilian assets Bernardo Carpio and Benjamin Mendiola, and a certain Randy who served as their driver.

“It is extremely disturbing to hear of these serious allegations against our people in the NBI. As the primary national law enforcement and investigative agency under the Department of Justice, our agents and personnel are supposed to be the first to merit and secure the trust of our people,” De Lima said.

She also directed NBI officer-in-charge Nonnatus Caesar Rojas to conduct an investigation on the concerned bureau employees.

In her complaint, Yamaguchi claimed that the respondents looted her office in Bacoor, Cavite and illegally arrested Nigerian national Dickson Akinbode on March 16 last year.

She claimed that at least 15 men, who introduced themselves as members

of the NBI-RAID, barged into her office reportedly to arrest Akinbode for a still undetermined case.

The complainant alleged that agent Liwalug took her Tiffany necklace worth P25,000, a pair of earrings worth P100,000, two gold rings, and two wristwatches.

She added that the respondents also took her laptop computer, her bag, passport, Social Security System identification card, and four envelopes containing P200,000 before they were brought to the office of NBI-RAID.

Yamaguchi said the bureau agents tortured Akinbode inside the NBI-Raid office. The agents allegedly hit the Nigerian with a baseball bat.

She alleged the agents repeatedly slapped and hit Akinbode, ignoring his pleas for them to stop. She then instructed him to turn on his cell phone so she could talk to them.

Yamaguchi saw her chance to get help when her captors left her cell phone on an office table. 

She sent a text message to her son, to a Nigerian Association officer and her friends.

“Please do something, we were kidnapped by the NBI on Wednesday night and being kept in Room 513. Please let a lawyer know and come see me ASAP,” her text message read.

She claimed that the NBI agents quickly prepared a complaint against them using three fake complainants after they learned that she was able to ask for help.

Before they were released, Yamaguchi alleged that Zuñiga asked her to produce P500,000 that was later reduced to P300,000. The suspects later took her ATM card and withdrew P32,000.

As for the participation of Contado, she said that the NBI official reportedly kept on asking her to pay P150,000 in exchange for the dismissal of the case filed before the DOJ against the Nigerian.

Yamaguchi admitted she decided to file the complaint after learning of

the case against dismissed NBI chief Gatdula involving the alleged kidnapping of undocumented Japanese national Noriyo Ohara last year.