DOJ reviews case vs suspect in PDEA scandal

 MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Justice (DOJ) started yesterday its reinvestigation of charges against an alleged drug dealer at the center of a controversy involving the top officials of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

Former PDEA deputy chief Carlos Gadapan had accused PDEA director general Jose Gutierrez of being involved in extorting P8 million from Mark Sy Tan, a Chinese national. Both Gutierrez and Tan denied the allegation.

Tan’s lawyer, Reynaldo Lugtu, said his client will pursue charges against some PDEA agents since there was an “attempt” to extort from him, according to a report by ABS-CBN.

“How could he shell out money when he was already detained?” Lugtu said.

Tan denied being involved with Clarence Chen Go, who was arrested in a drug bust in February after he was alleged caught selling a kilo of shabu worth P3.6 million to an undercover agent.

PDEA agents alleged that Tan and reported accomplices Changxin Wang and Matthew Tan eluded arrest after leaving Go in the area.

Tan was handcuffed when he faced DOJ panel composed of Assistant State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera and Prosecution Attorney Anna Noreen Devanadera.

Tan was already being tried by a Quezon City regional trial court along with Go but he sought reinvestigation of the charges by the DOJ. The RTC granted his motion because he was not given a chance to answer the charges in a regular preliminary investigation.

Through Lugtu, he belied PDEA’s allegation that he was part of a drug syndicate collecting sales for illegal drugs through his bank accounts.

Tan said he gets his income from a family business of subcontracting and marketing of garments and also from a money transfer business that serves fellow Chinese residing or doing business here.

Tan said he was implicated in the case simply when PDEA agents relied on instructions given by Changxin for payment for the illegal drugs sold to the agents.

Tan said the transactions with clients are made via telephone where he does not get to personally meet his clients.