Two gang leaders inside the New Bilibid Prison expressed their readiness to sue suspended Bureau of Corrections chief Gerald Bantag after they said they were wounded a few months back inside the office of the erstwhile bureau chief.
Interviewed inside the same office where Bantag allegedly hurt them using a double bladed weapon and a kris, the leaders of Batang Cebu and Batang Mindanao narrated the incident that transpired on 11 February 2022.
"Pinatawag po nila kami sa kanyang opisina at pagdating doon meron siyang kainuman na dalawang PDL at tila lasing na sila sa pag-inom ng alak," said the Batang Mindanao head. (We were summoned to his office and there we saw them drinking and were apparently already drunk.)
Holding a bladed weapon, Bantag alleged pushed the tip of the weapon against the hand of the Batang Mindanao head, causing injury.
Bureau of Corrections Deputy Security Officer Ricardo S. Zulueta gave the injured man a handkerchief to wrap around the wound and placed a basin on his foot to catch the blood. Zulueta eventually decided to bring the wounded inmate to the hospital.
The Batang Cebu gang leader claimed, on the other hand, that Bantag likewise wounded him in the leg with the bladed weapon. Before that, he said
Bantag had ripped shirt and pointed the weapon at his left chest.
"Lasing po siya. Ipinatawag kami kasi nagkaroon ng pugahan sa ibang building," said the gang leader. (He was drunk at the time. They called for us due to the escape of some inmates in a different building.)
BuCor chief Gregorio Catapang said he will endorse the matter to the Human Rights Commission to determine what charges can be filed against Bantag.
"Even if they are persons deprived of liberty, their rights should be respected. We should not harm them. As the President was saying, there should be compassionate justice always," said Catapang.
