NBP denies prison drug trade

An official of the New Bilibid Prison yesterday denied that there is an ongoing illegal drug trade in the NBP, particularly at the maximum security compound.

NBP Superintendent Ramon Reyes said the woman who alleged that illegal drugs are being supplied to inmates is just trying to ruin the present NBP leadership.

“That report has cropped up several times. It’s old news,” Reyes said in Filipino.

He said the woman, who claimed to be the wife of an inmate in the NBP, requested anonymity because she was just making up stories and is not brave enough to come out in the open. “It is simply a poison letter,” Reyes said.

He added that it is impossible for illegal drugs to be smuggled into the prison compound since they have very stringent measures within and outside the compound, such as thoroughly inspecting the bags of visitors.

Meanwhile, Bureau of Corrections Director Oscar Calderon was unavailable for comment. His aide said he is attending a command conference.

This developed after woman sought the help of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency to reportedly stop “immoral values among prisoners and authorities alike” after she witnessed her husband use methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu with fellow inmates last month.

The woman said her husband confessed to her that the illegal drug was being supplied to well-off inmates at the maximum security compound by a fellow inmate who has links to NBP officials. – Rhodina Villanueva