Self-confessed drug lord Kerwin Espinosa, convicted drug lord Peter Co and several others will be sued criminally by the Department of Justice (DoJ) before the Makati City Regional Trial Court (RTC) today.

The charges according to Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera, chair of the second panel of prosecutors handling the complaint filed by the Philippine National Police (PNP), are supposed to be filed on Friday but it opted to move it to a later date due to continuous rains that resulted in flooded areas in Manila and Makati.

“Because of flood in Makati and Manila and the intervening weekend. We will file the charges tomorrow (Tuesday),” Navera said yesterday.

The filing of charges against the said personalities came after probable cause was determined by the second prosecution panel composed of Navera, Assistant State Prosecutor Anna Noreen Devanadera and Prosecution Attorney Herbert Calvin Abugan.

Espinosa, Co, Lovely Imperial and Ruel Malindagan will be charged for violation of Section 26 (B) in relation to Section 5, Article II of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Acts of 2002.

Under the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, conspiracy to commit illegal drug trading is an offense distinct from drug trading, the panel said and clarified that the agreement to trade in drugs is the gravamen (most serious part) of such an offense.

The drugs themselves considered as corpus delicti of the drug trading is not necessary under Section 28 (B) of the law,” read the resolution approved by Acting Prosecutor General Richard Anthony Fadullon.

The testimonies of Marcelo Adorco, Espinosa’s driver, who identified Espinosa, Co, Impal and Malindagan as his cohorts to charge them with conspiracy to commit illegal drug trade was given weight by the panel.

“In our resolution, which speaks for itself, we explained that the gravamen of the offense in conspiracy is the conspiracy itself—the agreement to engage in illegal drug trade. So there’s really no need to present the drug itself and this has been explained by the Supreme Court…so we just took it from there based on the prevailing doctrine regarding the offense of conspiracy,” Navera said.

The confession of Espinosa that he traded drugs in Region 7 was also considered by the panel.

“Espinosa’s confession appears in the transcript of stenographic notes on the legislative investigation of the Senate Committees on Justice and Public Order,” the panel pointed out.

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