Drilon asks DFA to cancel passport of alleged ‘drug queen’

MANILA, Philippines— Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon on Monday urged the Department of Foreign Affairs for immediate revocation of the passport of former village chief in Manila, Guia Gomez Castro, who has been tagged as a supposed "drug queen."

Castro, a former village chief of Barangay 484 Zone 48 of Manila, won in the last elections but filed for an indefinite leave last April, according to Manila Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso.

She was confirmed to have left the country on September 21 for Bangkok, Thailand, days before she was named to have connivance with police officers in “recycling” seized drugs sold on the streets.

For this, Drilon said Castro is considered a “fugitive from justice.”

"It appears that Mrs. Castro does not intend to return to the country and face the warrants of arrest issued against her since 2002 for violation of Republic Act 6425 or the Dangerous Drugs Act. Hence, she is a fugitive from justice," the senator said.

He added that conviction is not required to consider a person as a fugitive from justice.

According to Drilon, the DFA chief, under the RA 8239 or the Philippine Passport Act, is authorized to cancel a passport “in the interest of national security or when the holder of the passport is a fugitive from justice.”

"The jurisprudence clarifies that mere commission of a crime and subsequent flight thereto sufficiently meets the definition of a fugitive," Drilon said.

"Hence, the DFA, to avoid miscarriage of justice and by virtue of the Philippine Passport Act, can validly and lawfully cancel her passport so we can restrict Castro's movement, and summon her back to the country to face,” he added.

Of the 16 cops involved in the supposed recycling of seized drugs, nine were already killed by motorcycle-riding gunmen.

Alleged lookout of Castro arrested

Meanwhile, on Monday, an alleged cohort of Castro, Marlon Dela Cruz, was arrested in a buy-bust operation of the Manila Police District Sampaloc Police Station’s Drug Enforcement Unit.

Dela Cruz was nabbed after the cops raided Algeciras Street in Barangay 484 Zone 43 and managed to obtain 8 pieces of small heat-sealed transparent plastic sachets with white crystalline substance, believed to be methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu.

The seized substance costs around P30,000.

The authorities also confiscated one P500 bill used as buy-bust money against Dela Cruz.

Dela Cruz is allegedly the lookout of Castro in her drug scheme. He violated Section 5 and Section 11 of Article II ng Republic Act 9165 o Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. — Rosette Adel