“This is another victory. Our hard work has paid off.
Senator Richard Gordon yesterday hailed it a victory by the Senate the Department of Justice’s decision to use Kerwin Espinosa’s testimony of himself as a drug lord to indict him and another convicted drug lord, Peter Co.
During last year’s hearing of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights headed by Gordon, Espinosa confessed to being a major distributor of illegal drugs in Regions 7 and 8.
He also admitted to have transacted with Co, who is detained at the New Bilibid Prisons.
“This is another victory. Our hard work has paid off,�? Gordon said. “This just shows that our investigations are getting results. Our probes and recommendations are used as basis for filing charges or as basis for conducting further investigations,�? Gordon added.
In 2016, Gordon’s committee, jointly with the Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs, conducted a probe on the killing of Albuera, Leyte Mayor Rolando Espinosa and drug suspect Raul Yap. The two were killed in a shootout inside the Baybay City Provincial Jail where they were detained on drug charges.
Kerwin Espinosa, the late mayor’s son, was called to testify during the course of the investigation and made the confession.
Recently, the DoJ filed charges of violation of Republic Act 9165 or The Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, or conspiracy to engage in the illegal drug trade against Espinosa, Co, Lovely Impal and Ruel Malindagan.
The new panel of state prosecutors also found “sufficient positive allegations�? from the testimonies of Marcelo Adorco against Espinosa, Co, Impal and Malindagan.
The panel also cited as basis the confession of Espinosa during a Senate inquiry that he was involved in drug trade in Regions 7 and 8.
Earlier, charges filed by the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detective Group against Espinosa were dismissed by a different set of prosecutors due to “weak evidence.�?
They pointed “inconsistencies�? in the testimony of Adorco.
The younger Espinosa is in detention since he was arrested in Abu Dhabi in October 2016.
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
Housing is probably the biggest issue affecting people the world over.
Malacañang on Monday called for a more thorough investigation into the questioned flood control projects in Taguig…
The defense on Monday backed the move by senator-judges to exclude a prosecution witness who testified on the firearms…
