A detainee held on illegal drug charges escaped from the detention facility of a police station in Garcia Hernandez 6am yesterday.
Garcia Hernandez police PO1 Jonathan Batchenilia said that the suspect, Cristino Branzuela, 36, bolted out of jail by sawing off the metal bars of his detention cell.
The escapee, a resident of Barangay Manaba of the said town, could have been given the saw through the back part of his cell which is an unrestricted pathway.
Batchenilia added that there are no walls or fences around the facility’s perimeter.
The town’s police continues to conduct an intensive manhunt for the fugitive.
Meanwhile, Branzuela’s family has cooperated with authorities to help them recapture the suspect so he can face the cases filed against him.
The suspect, who is listed in the town’s watch list of drug personalities, was apprehended on June 22, 2016 through a buy-bust operation set up by the Garcia Hernandez police.
He was charged for violating Section 5 and Section 11, Article II of Republic Act 9165 or the Dangerous Drugs Act. (with reports from Allen Doydora)