Drug, robbery suspect bolts jail

CEBU — High-profile drug and robbery suspect Joel "Tongol" Nodalo bolted the Bagong Buhay Rehabilitation Center along with cellphone robbery suspect Riel Bautista, Michael Bernabe and a certain Boboy at 7:15 last night.

The slip came 48 hours after the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police placed the city under high alert purportedly to brace for sympathy attacks expected to be launched by terrorist rebels amid the escalating War On Iraq.

The so-called highest alert took a slap in local security after the notorious Nodalo and three others escaped to a waiting van at BBRC shortly after 7 p.m. yesterday and had reportedly boarded a pump boat as they sped to freedom.

BBRC deputy warden Reynaldo Berdin in a press conference called shortly after the escape said a female visitor asked for permission from jail inspector Evelino Escaño that she will hand over ice cubes to Nodalo. The female visitor was made to wait at gate 1.

Escaño then told Nodalo, who was at his quarters inside gate 3, to fetch the ice cubes from the woman visitor at gate 1. The woman reportedly whispered to Nodalo "naa na ang driver."

Nodalo then brought the ice cubes back to his quarters. But shortly after, he went out again and brought with him an electronic sharpening equipment. As he went out, Bautista towed close behind reportedly with a gun tucked at the back of his waist.

Nodalo requested Escaño to open the gate because they wanted the electronic sharpening equipment brought outside. Nodalo, suddenly whipped out a gun and pointed it at Escano’s temple, gesturing at Escaño to move back inside the jail. — Freeman News Service