Ex-Customs officer: I was told Paolo Duterte, Mans Carpio, Yang owned shabu shipment

BACOLOR — A former officer of the Bureau of Customs on Friday testified before a joint congressional hearing that he had been told that the multi-billion-peso shabu shipment seized in 2018 belonged to Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte, Vice President Sara Duterte's husband Mans Carpio, and former presidential economic adviser Michael Yang.

Jimmy Guban, who has been indicted in connection with the drug shipment, temporarily came out of detention to testify about the shabu which were supposed to have been shipped inside magnetic lifters before a joint congressional hearing on the war on drugs, all related atrocities, and the Philippine offshore gaming operators or POGOs.

"Huwag ka matakot kasi sila Mans Carpio, Pulong Duterte at Michael Yang ang may-ari ng shipment," Guban quoted a lower-ranked Customs officer as telling him about the shipment of shabu in 2018.

(Don't be afraid because the shipment belongs to Mans Carpio, Pulong Duterte, and Michael Yang.)

Congressman Duterte, in a statement, said Guban’s claims should be dismissed for being baseless.

“Nais ko pong ipaalala sa taumbayan na ang salitang 'star witness' ay humahalimbawa lamang sa mga taong nagsasalita ng katotohanan lamang at may kredibilidad. Hindi po si Jimmy Guban ang taong yan sapagkat siya po ay na i-contempt na ng Senate Blue Ribbon Committee dahil sa kanyang pagsisinungaling,” Duterte said, referring to a time when Guban made conflicting statements before a Senate inquiry on the entry of P11 billion illegal shabu shipment in the country.

(A star witness is someone who is credible and tells the truth, and that is not Guban. He has been previously cited in contempt by the Senate for lying.)

“Klaro po na walang kredibilidad ang taong ‘yan at walang basehan ang kanyang mga sinasabi noon pa man, kaya di ko po alam kung bakit bigla po siyang naging star witness dito,” Duterte added.

(It is clear that he has no credibility and his claims have no basis. I don’t understand why he is suddenly a star witness here.)

Yang's lawyer Atty. Raymond Fortun said Guban's statements against his client were "hearsay in nature."

"Mr. Guban had made statements under oath in the past which are contradictory to what he is saying now.  The Supreme Court has looked with disfavor upon retractions of testimonies previously given in court," Fortun said.

"Mr. Yang's name does not appear in any of the shipping documents, nor is he the consignee.  By law, he is not the owner of the shipment," he added.

Guban told the four House committees that the listed owners of Vecaba Trading, the consignee or identified recipient of the said P11 billion illegal drug shipment, were dummies of a certain Pony Chen and Emily Luquingan.

“Sabi niya (the lower ranking officer), Michael Yang eh. Michael Yang ‘yan. Mans. Pulong. Hingi na lang ng tulong sa inyo. Tulong ‘yan. Parang hindi po na...parang normal na normal lang. Na ‘yung importation, ang consignee ay Vecaba Trading,” Guban said.

(He told me that’s Michael Yang, Mans, Pulong. I  am asking for help. It was all normal for them, that the importation is via the consignee, Vecaba Trading.) 

House dangerous drugs panel chairman and Surigao del Norte Rep. Ace Barbers said that Guban’s testimony is only a part of the puzzle for now.

“His testimony is something new and would more or less relate to our theory that the illegal drugs are linked to other crimes, like money laundering. Look at his testimony: illegal drugs were slipped in containers (magnetic lifters), and there are people enabling it,” Barbers said.

“You know, he never thought twice in saying who these people are, which was contrary to how he did testify before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee [in 2018]. This is still a puzzle, and we do hope that during the next hearing, we can put the pieces of the puzzle [together],” Barbers added.

Barbers was referring to a time when Guban initially accused his then-fellow police official, Senior Superintendent Eduardo Acierto of bringing the P11-billion shabu shipment.

Guban, however, later backpedaled and said he and Acierto worked together to stop the entry of the illegal drugs shipment.

Given Guban’s history, Barbers said the House needs time to evaluate his testimony.

“There seems to be a pressure why he testified before. A lot of people want to share information, but titimbangin talaga namin ito (we will weigh this),” he said.

“What I can say is that you can count on us that we won’t participate in any politically motivated committee report here,” he added.—NB, GMA Integrated News