Cebu City, Philippines — Some jail officials and workers of the Medellin District Jail may possibly face administrative liabilities if they are proven to have helped a high-profile inmate escape.
Jail Senior Inspector Rolly Bandeling, spokesperson of the Bureau of Management and Penology in Central Visayas (BJMP-7), said an investigation is now being conducted to determine how and why Jinnefer Mercader escaped the facility last Tuesday evening, March 5, 2019.
“The possibility that some jail officers and workers helped him to escape is yet to be determined. But we don’t discount it,” said Bandeling.
Read: High-risk inmate from Borbon escapes Medellin Jail
“Once proven that some (jail officials) indeed helped Mercader, they will likely face some penalties, which may include dismissal from service,” he added.
A manhunt for Mercader, who is the former barangay captain of Lugo in Borbon town of northern Cebu, is being conducted by law enforcers in Cebu.
Considered as armed and dangerous, police said they are looking into the likelihood that some politicians may have hired Mercader as their hitmen, especially that the May 2019 polls is drawing near.
Read: ‘I was a hitman’
Mercader was arrested in September 2017 for illegal possession of firearms in his residence in Barangay Cahel, Borbon town.
Meanwhile, Bandeling said they will not suspend the visitation privileges of the over 500 inmates housed in Medellin District Jail despite the incident.
He added that operatives of the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) are now deployed in the jail facility to augment security while the investigation is on going. /bmjo