MANILA, Philippines - People involved in anomalies in the government are framing businessman Davidson Bangayan for smuggling, a lawyer said Thursday.
"Since birth, isa lang po ang identity ni Davidson Bangayan, iyon nga po ay Davidson Bangayan lang," lawyer Benito Salazar said in an interview over radio dzMM.
Bangayan has been named by Justice Secretary Leila de Lima as the person behind the alias David Tan, the alleged king of rice smuggling in the country.
Salazar alleged that a group is bribing state investigators and people from the Department of Justice (DOJ) to frame up Bangayan.
The lawyer said the authorities should let the issue rest as they have already submitted needed documents such as birth certificates, credit cards and a driver's license proving that Bangayan is not connected with Tan.
Related story: NBI arrests alleged rice smuggling king
"Akala ko po 'yung usapin na 'yan ay natapos na nung isang araw kasi binigyan na namin sila ng tsansa na ayusin na ng lahat ng discrepancy sa identity," Salazar said.
Bangayan was arrested last Tuesday based on an arrest warrant issued by the Caloocan City Regional Trial Court in connection with an electricity pilferage case.
The businessman, who denied his supposed involvement in any smuggling operations, has been released due to discrepancies found in the arrest warrant.
Bangayan, however, was placed under the Bureau of Immigration's lookout bulletin.
Read: Bangayan roams free for now
Salazar said that while the National Bureau of Investigation is confident that his client and the suspected smuggler are one and the same person, their information on Tan is misleading.
"Hindi po namin alam kung saan nila nakuha 'yang address na 'yan at hindi po namin matukoy kung sino ang nagbigay sa kanila ng address na 'yan," he said.
The DOJ, meanwhile, said businessman Jesus Arranza will be summoned to testify on Bangayan's identity.
Arranza was among the first to express the possibility that Tan and Bangayan are the same person. He claimed that Bangayan did not deny his identity as David Tan before the Calamba City Regional Trial Court in July 13, 2005.
Bangayan appeared before the local court in Calamba City after a Singaporean firm filed a case against him. Bangayan was allegedly also identified in the case file as David Tan.
Read: Could Bangayan be David Tan? Businessman weighs in