Convicted drug lord Herbert Colangco sings yet again, but this time, he won’t be starring in his own music video.
According to the Philippine Star, Colangco leads the Carcel Side, “a coalition of gangs of inmates from the Visayas and Mindanao,” 7,000 strong.
Colangco claims in his four-page affidavit that the Carcel Side pays then-justice secretary Leila De Lima, the alleged protector of drug lords inside the New Bilibid Prison (a maximum security facility south of Metro Manila), at least PHP 3 million every month to keep their “businesses” thriving inside the prison.
In his own estimation, the monthly revenue of the illegal drug trade inside Bilibid is no less than PHP 50 million before they were transferred to an NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) facility in 2014.
Colangco shared in detail how he paid De Lima so he could bring drugs and goods like beer inside the maximum security prison with the help of Colangco’s staff named Rey, De Lima’s security personnel Joenel Sanchez and her driver-boyfriend Ronnie Dayan.
He also said De Lima has close ties with Jaybee Sebastian, the leader of the other gang inside Bilibid, which has more than 5,000 members.
Aside from Colangco, at least 11 other high-profile inmates are set to testify against De Lima, according to Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II. The witnesses have been transferred to another facility to secure their safety prior to the hearing.
De Lima allegedly allowed the proliferation of illegal drug trade inside the Bilibid, and for a hefty sum, looked the other way as high-profile inmates built their own kubol — a fancy cell containing luxury items like mobile phones, Internet connection, air conditioning units, cable TVs, a karaoke machine, or in the case of Colangco: a complete recording studio.
BONUS: Herbert Colangco’s music video for his single Akala Mo Lang ‘Yun, which was shot inside the New Bilibid Prison.
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