Go victim's kin laughs off kidnap story

MANILA, Philippines - The family of road rage victim Eldon Maguan yesterday described as an “unbelievable alibi” the claims of the sister of convicted murderer Rolito Go that he was kidnapped inside the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City.

Maguan’s elder brother Ellis laughed off claims by Go’s sister Julie that the supposed kidnappers were seeking a P1-million ransom in exchange for the release of her brother.

Ellis said the kidnappers could have asked for more as the “world knows that Rolito is a big-time government contractor and wealthy businessman before he killed our brother in (a) simple traffic accident in 1991.”

“Who would kidnap an ailing convicted murderer like Rolito Go?” Ellis asked.

It was reported that Go is suffering from colon cancer and had been in and out of the NBP for hospital checkups.

“Would anyone believe that Rolito was kidnapped? First of all, the kidnapping supposedly occurred in the early hours of the morning. Are the kidnappers awake at that time? Second, why was it that his sister was claiming that the kidnappers were demanding P1-million ransom at that time?” Ellis asked.

Ellis said Go is notoriously famous for slipping out of jail even while heavily guarded.

Go was sentenced in 1994 to a maximum 30 years imprisonment for the murder of Maguan in a road rage fit in Greenhills, San Juan in 1991.

Go escaped from the Rizal Provincial Jail in Pasig City on the eve of All Saints’ Day in 1994, weeks after the Pasig Regional Trial Court sentenced him to life imprisonment.

The Maguans, however, believed that Go was “freed” by jail guards at that time. They said the guards were later dismissed from the service.

Two years later, the police caught up with Go at a piggery farm in Pampanga. Reports said Go tried to bribe the arresting officers but his offer was turned down. 

Like the escape incident in 1994, Ellis believed that Go was also “released and freed” by prison officials in exchange for large sums of money.

He said there are several anomalies happening inside the NBP that involved its ranking officials following the graft charges filed against Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) director Gaudencio Pangilinan and his assistants before the Office of the Ombudsman.

The Maguans learned that Go, a high profile inmate, had been leaving the NBP compound without authorization.

He was designated as a living out inmate in 2008, like former Batangas governor Antonio Leviste, who was arrested last year when he visited his office building in Makati City for leaving the penitentiary without permission or a pass.

The Maguans have appealed since last year to Justice Secretary Leila de Lima to reject Go’s application to leave the prison compound for medical treatment.

They said, “It’s only the convict’s alibi to visit his family in Quezon City which Go has been doing since 2008.”

Ellis also revealed Go’s small makeshift cell inside the NBP is complete with refrigerator, electric fans, television, radio, personal bed and water coolers since he was brought to the NBP in 1994 following the verdict.