Marcelino surrenders to AFP

MANILA, Philippines – Marine Lt. Col. Ferdinand Marcelino, facing arrest after a Manila court revived drug charges against him, surrendered to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) at around noon yesterday.

Marcelino, accompanied by his sister, presented himself before the AFP Provost Marshal General, where he “underwent booking processes, including fingerprinting, mug shots and physical examination” said Col. Edgard Arevalo, AFP public affairs office chief, adding that the AFP is filing a petition before the court for Marcelino’s custody.

The Philippine National Police Anti-Illegal Drugs Group (PNP-AIDG) launched a manhunt for Marcelino and Chinese national Yan Yi Shou after a Manila court issued a warrant for their arrest.

The case against Marcelino and Yan stemmed from their arrest at a townhouse that allegedly doubled as a drug laboratory in Sta. Cruz, Manila on Jan. 21 last year.

Seventy-six kilos of shabu, with a street value of P383 million, were seized from the townhouse.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the PNP-AIDG filed drug charges against Marcelino and Yan, who said they were on an intelligence operation at the time.

The drug case against the Marine officer, however, was ordered dismissed by Department of Justice (DOJ), then headed by now Sen. Leila de Lima. 

When Vitaliano Aguirre II assumed the top DOJ post, the case was reopened and the Manila regional trial court issued a warrant for the arrest of Marcelino and Yan last week.

Arevalo said Marcelino is now detained at the AFP’s Military Police custodial facility.

In a text message to fellow military officers, Marcelino told them that while he no longer trusts the country’s justice system, he surrendered and is allowing himself to be jailed once again because he still believes that justice will prevail in the end.

“I do not deserve this and I have suffered more than enough. I need your help for me to once again get justice because I am innocent of all these charges. It’s only you whom I can trust now,” Marcelino said.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, an officer sympathetic to Marcelino said the AFP should take custody of the officer, just like retired Army general Jovito Palparan. 

“His life is in danger  if he is detained outside of military custody because during his stint at the PDEA, he was instrumental in the arrest and conviction of big-time drug lords. He too earned the ire of police officers who are the real protectors of big-time drug syndicates operating in the country,” Marcelino’s fellow officer said.

Another officer said Marcelino is simply a victim of the political war between President Duterte and De Lima. ­

The DOJ has asked the court to issue a hold departure order against Marcelino and Yan to prevent them from fleeing to another country. – With Edu Punay