Wife says Ladlad’s ATM card lost in police raid, QCPD denies seizing it

The wife of former National Democratic Front consultant Vic Ladlad has alleged that her husband's ATM card was taken when he was arrested last week.

The Philippine National Police, however, denied that the Ladlad's ATM card was among the items arresting officers confiscated during the raid at a house in Novaliches on November 8.

"While the arrest operation for Imelda Marcos following her graft conviction and for the killers of human rights lawyer Benjamin Ramos and the Sagay 9 deserves utmost priority, I request the concerned authorities to immediately investigate the repeated attempts to steal the deposit in my husband Vic Ladlad's Landbank Visa Debit Card," Fides Ladlad said in a Facebook post over the weekend.

Fides said the funds in the ATM account includes Ladlad's human rights compensation as a political prisoner during the Marcos regime.

"Please just return to us this Landbank card that was pilfered during that planting expedition of November 8," she added.

Fides also posted a text message from the bank as regards the inactive status of the ATM due to "unauthorized transactions."

Armed with a warrant, the PNP searched the Novaliches residence and found rifles and a grenade, prompting the officers to arrest Ladlad.

“We would like to reiterate that the ATM card of Vicente Ladlad was not among the confiscated items during the implementation of a search warrant for violation of the Comprehensive Law on Firearms and Ammunition last November 8 in Novaliches, Quezon City, We therefore encourage Ladlad’s camp to file a formal complaint for us to conduct investigation on the alleged unauthorized withdrawal from Ladlad’s Landbank ATM card as claimed by Ladlas’s wife, Fides Lim,” Esquivel said in a statement.

Esquivel asked Fides to work with the police in finding out the person behind Ladlad's ATM card.

“It would be better if Mrs. Lim-Ladlad will cooperate with us by giving details on the alleged unauthorized bank withdrawal so that we could make a formal request from the Landbank of the record of the debit card's transactions," Quezon City Police District director Chief Superintendent Joselito Esquivel said.

"With the filing of a formal request by Ladlad’s camp, we could also request for the bank’s closed circuit television (CCTV) footages to help us establish the identity of the person in the alleged unauthorized bank withdrawal," he added. —Llanesca T. Panti/NB, GMA News