The camp commander and a commissioned officer of Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm (SPPF) in Occidental Mindoro were relieved by Bureau of Corrections Director General Gregorio Pio P. Catapang Jr. following a foiled attempt to smuggle contraband into the corrections facility.

Those relieved are C/CINSP Francisco Madrid, the camp commander, and CT/INSP Edgar Laudencia. They are now assigned to the Directorate for Personnel and Human Resource Development at the National Headquarters in Muntinlupa City for further investigation.

A report submitted to Catapang by SPPF Acting Superintendent CCINSP Abel Ciruela showed the smuggling attempt began when a dump truck, bearing the plate number NAO 3283 and loaded with gravel and sand, parked suspiciously outside the perimeter of the SPPF Hospital.

Upon questioning, the driver, Rob Antaran, claimed he had a permit signed by Madrid allowing him to deliver the materials inside the facility, prompting the security team to instruct the driver to proceed to the designated unloading area.

But upon arrival at the area, the driver refused to unload his gravel and sand, citing a malfunction of the hydraulic system.

Due to his persistent refusal to unload, he was brought to the visiting area near where the dump truck was parked for questioning, where he admitted that the load of gravel and sand contained hidden contraband.

This prompted the security and operations personnel to unload the gravel and sand and recover the contraband, which consisted of 213 bottles of 1L Ginebra San Miguel, 48 bottles of 700ml Ginebra San Miguel, 16 bottles of 1L Jack Daniel’s Whiskey, 2 bottles of 700ml Jack Daniel’s Whiskey, 30 reams of Marlboro cigarettes with 10 packs per ream, 69 reams of tobacco with 10 packs per ream, 10 packs of tobacco with 6 bricks per pack, and 37 sticks of tobacco.

Catapang stated that he ordered a thorough investigation of the incident to uncover whether there are other BuCor personnel involved in the attempt to bring contraband into the facility.

In light of the recent events at SPPF, Catapang ordered all superintendents of OPPF to undertake a comprehensive review of their existing protocols related to the management and inspection of deliveries and to implement stricter guidelines for vehicle checks, monitoring entry permits, and conducting unannounced inspections to mitigate the risk of future smuggling attempts.