Bureau of Corrections or BuCor Director General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. said Thursday he had ordered Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm Supt. Robert A. Veneracion to closely monitor the movements of the so-called "Sablayan 12" in view of the failed attempt to transfer them using a fake memorandum.

Catapang said he immediately texted Veneracion upon discovering that Memorandum Circular 003 dated 8 September 2023 and "signed" by Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla was fake.

"I immediately texted Veneracion to disregard the order to prevent the inmates from being shipped to Manila due to the fake order," Catapang said.

Remulla earlier said the Department of Justice and the BuCor had not issued a memorandum ordering the return to the national penitentiary of the 12 inmates who had linked former Senator Leila de Lima to the illegal drug trade at the New Bilibid Prison when she was the DoJ chief.

"We believe that certain government employees were in connivance in the issuance of that memorandum circular. I have asked the NBI to look for the source of the document," Remulla said.

The fake memorandum was also emailed to various officials of the DoJ. It quoted Remulla as urging Catapang to consider the return to the New Bilibid Prison of inmates Noel Martinez, Jerry Pepino, Herbert Colangco, Tomas Donina, Jaime Patio, Rodolfo Magleo, German Agojo, Hans Anton Tan, Joel Capones, Peter Co, Engelberto Duran and Nonilo Arile.

It claimed the national penitentiary had been designated by the DoJ-administered Witness Protection Program as the "custodial facility" for the purpose of safekeeping the inmates who were under the program and considered high value or high risk.