Ecleo taken to hospital

CEBU CITY — Just as he was about to be transferred to another cell the other day, jailed cult leader Ruben Ecleo Jr. complained of chest pains and was taken to the hospital instead.

Ecleo, 42, is now both under intensive care and under heavy guard at the Cebu City Medical Center.

Ecleo, supreme leader of the Surigao-based Philippine Benevolent Missionaries Association, is awaiting trial for the murder of his wife Alona Bacolod in Cebu last year.

Caught by reporters last Friday with a woman inside his cell, which he had shielded with curtains, Ecleo was to be transferred to another cell when he suddenly complained of chest pains.

Several investigations are now underway as a result of Friday’s incident, with jail warden Lita Quilaton being asked to explain the presence of the woman in Ecleo’s cell and his privileges as a so-called "adviser" to the inmates. — Freeman News Service