DOJ reverses dismissal of case: Police officer indicted as shabu lab's protector

BAUANG, La Union, Philippines – The prosecutor designated by Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez to reinvestigate the dismissed case involving the shabu laboratory busted in Naguilian town last year has found probable cause to indict a former police chief of Dagupan City as protector of the illegal facility.

La Union prosecutor Danilo Bumacod indicted Superintendent Dionicio Borromeo and Joselito Artuz, the alleged financier of the shabu lab, along with several unnamed Chinese and Filipino cohorts.

Bumacod filed an amended information and a motion for the issuance of arrest warrants for Borromeo and Artuz with the Regional Trial Court Branch 33 here yesterday.

Among the documents which Bumacod submitted was his 34-page resolution which revealed that Borromeo and Artuz had been in constant communication with Dante Palaganas, the shabu lab’s caretaker, from the time they started looking for a site for the illegal facility to the raid on July 9 last year.

“Palaganas and Andy Tangalin acted as caretakers, Artuz as financier, Borromeo as protector, and John Does, some (of them) foreigners, did then and there willfully, unlawfully, and feloniously manufacture, produce, process shabu, directly by means of chemical synthesis in Bimmotobot by making it appear that they (were) engaged in the piggery business,” read a part of the amended information obtained by The STAR.

Last Nov. 12, a three-man prosecution panel dismissed the complaints against Borromeo and three of his former men at the Regional Mobile Group 1, namely PO3 Joey Abang, PO2 Walter Banan and PO1 Rodolfo Damian.  

However, in his Feb. 4 resolution, Bumacod reversed the decision by indicting Borromeo. He, however, affirmed the dismissal of the charges against the three junior policemen who were found liable only for administrative lapses.

“There is probable cause to warrant Borromeo’s indictment of an offense with overwhelming magnitude of nefarious effect. Surely, there are still people greatly involved in the operation of the laboratory where manufacture of drug was undertaken,” Bumacod said in his resolution.

President Arroyo, acting on the request of the Catholic clergy in La Union headed by Bishop Artemio Rillera, ordered Gonzalez last Dec. 30 to reinvestigate the case.

Gonzalez directed Bumacod on Jan. 5 to start the review of the case but strictly told him not to release his resolution to anyone without his approval.

On Feb. 16, after reviewing Bumacod’s resolution, Gonzalez ordered him to file the information in court, which the prosecutor did yesterday.

Chief Superintendent Ramon Gatan, head of Task Force Bimmotobot (named after the Naguilian village where the shabu lab was busted), welcomed the new development in the case.

“Let justice (take) its course. This is a chance (for Borromeo) to defend himself in court. Although he belongs to our (police) organization, let him answer the accusations. As far as we are concerned, we have done our job,” Gatan said.  

The task force submitted additional evidence during the reinvestigation.