PNP: No proof Peter Lim left Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — There is still no concrete proof that suspected drug lord Peter Go Lim has slipped out of the country, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said yesterday.

According to PNP chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, they have yet to obtain evidence that Lim is no longer in the country.

“There is no confirmation that he escaped and authorities continue to conduct verification,” he said in Filipino during a Laging Handa briefing.

Eleazar earlier ordered the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) and Drug Enforcement Group to verify if the elusive fugitive has already escaped.

The two police units are coordinating with other concerned government agencies to determine Lim’s whereabouts.

Eleazar said they also have communicated with their foreign counterparts for possible leads on Lim, adding that the PNP is not going to stop searching for the Cebu-based businessman.

CIDG director Maj. Gen. Albert Ignatius Ferro earlier said they are looking into the possibility that Lim escaped through the country’s back door after they learned from the Bureau of immigration there is no record of him leaving the country.

Last week, Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Eduardo Año said the latest information the DILG has on Lim is that he has left the country.

Lim is one of the alleged suppliers of another drug trafficker, Kerwin Espinosa.

Lim and his brother were reportedly campaign supporters of President Duterte in 2016. The fugitive was listed in the order of battle of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency after he was indicted by the Department of Justice on charges of conspiracy to commit illegal drug trading.