NBI on ‘tanim-bala’ incidents: Records don’t match

MANILA, Philippines – Records and other pieces of evidence in the “tanim-bala” or bullet planting incidents don’t match and the agencies that submitted them should explain the discrepancies, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said yesterday.

The Special Task Force on Tanim/Laglag Bala asked for an extension of the deadline, which lapsed last Wednesday, because its members still need to reconcile some of the conflicting information submitted by government agencies involved in these incidents, NBI Director Virgilio Mendez said.

The team was given only 15 days to investigate and make a report.

“There are several data that we have to check and (we) need an explanation from the different agencies because their records do not match as to the number of incidents, the number of cases received by the other agencies, and number of cases that were recommended for prosecution,” he said. 

He added that it is vital for the investigating team to reconcile these figures, especially if they would recommend the filing of charges against “people involved in the alleged scam.”

Mendez said it is crucial for the team to identify the types of bullets involved in each of the cases, which reportedly involve airport personnel secreting a bullet in the luggage of a traveler.

The victim would be apprehended and forced to shell out money to avoid arrest.