Gonzalez orders transfer of LU shabu lab case to DOJ

By Jerry Padilla

SAN FERNANDO, La Union – Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez ordered Tuesday the transfer of the case on the big shabu laboratory busted in Naguilian town, to Manila for preliminary investigation.

Chief Supt. Ramon Gatan, head of Task Force Bimmotobot, named after the remote village in Naguilian where the shabu lab was discovered, told the media Gonzalez’s order was relayed to fiscal Danilo Bumacod of the provincial prosecutor’s office here.

Gatan said the order came out without consultation with authorities concerned or with Bumacod, who was reportedly preparing a resolution for the release of arrest warrants against the suspects.

“The task force was not consulted if there was such a motion to transfer the case,” said Gatan. “We don’t know the reason. There’s no explanation in the order. The case was already up for resolution by Bumacod.”

Gatan, deputy regional police director for administration, said even Bumacod was not aware of the basis for the order, which stated three DOJ prosecutors would handle the preliminary investigation.

Gatan said Bumacod should be included in the panel of prosecutors because he was knowledgeable of the case.

“If the case would be transferred, it would again take a longer period of time for the prosecutors to study the case,” he said.

Gatan meanwhile confirmed two of the 55 policemen who were brought to Camp Crame in connection with the investigation into the shabu lab failed the lie detector test.

“There were five policemen who initially underwent the lie detector test and two of them failed it,” he said. He declined to identify the two policemen.

Gatan said the lie detector test was conducted to determine the credibility of the policemen and even Dante Palaganas, the arrested caretaker of the shabu lab.