Bilibid tunnel ‘old escape route’

MANILA, Philippines - A tunnel found inside the tightly guarded maximum security compound of New Bilibid Prison served as an escape route for about 20 inmates during the 1980s, sources told The STAR.

The information also reached the office of NBP superintendent Ricardo Rabo, who insisted yesterday that the hole discovered by excavators of water firm Maynilad was part of the penitentiary’s drainage system.

“There were stories that the tunnel was used as an escape route. But I have no idea. What I know is that it’s part of the drainage system,” Rabo said in an interview.

Two sources privy to NBP’s operations said the hole was “not an ordinary tunnel.”

“The escapees used to pass through there,” one of the sources said when asked to explain why there was a tunnel in the compound. The second source confirmed this in a separate interview.

The tunnel measures about three feet in diameter and about seven to 10 feet in length, according to Bureau of Corrections chief Franklin Bucayu.

A person can fit inside the hole, according to STAR sources. Rabo confirmed this, saying they would “fit if they crawl.”

The NBP is supervised by the BuCor, which is under the watch of the Department of Justice (DOJ).

Rabo and Bucayu also said the “tunnel” had been closed, but both sources said otherwise.

DOJ Secretary Leila de Lima ordered an investigation into Maynilad’s discovery last Monday. She told NBI reporters yesterday that she is still waiting for Bucayu’s report.