Catapang asks why inmates' bodies piled up at mortuary, Fortun concerned

Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) officer-in-charge Gregorio Catapang Jr. said there appeared to be negligence after cadavers of New Bilibid Prison (NBP) inmates remained for months at a funeral home.

According to Jun Veneracion’s report on “24 Oras”, 176 bodies of deceased inmates were still at the Eastern Funeral Homes since December 2021.

Eastern is the sole accredited funeral parlor of the BuCor in Muntinlupa City

“Trabaho ‘yan ng previous administration,  eh. Pero ang tingin ko, negligence ‘yan o mismanagement. Bakit naipon ang patay na ’yan?” Catapang said.

Forensic pathologist Dr. Raquel Fortun, on the other hand, expressed concern over the number of deaths in the NBP.

“Now, there’s this question of, baka may foul play? And I think, medyo taasan ng kilay bakit ang daming namamatay sa preso sa Bilibid? And that’s a bad sign,” Fortun said.

GMA News Online sought comment from suspended BuCor chief Gerald Bantag and BuCor Chief PIO Sonny Del Rosario but they have yet to reply as of this posting.

Remulla said around nine unclaimed cadavers had been buried, leaving 167 to be transferred to the University of the Philippines College of Medicine.

GMA Integrated News has obtained the list of names of persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) who died while still at the NBP.

These deaths were from December 2021 until November 2022.

According to the record of the BuCor, the causes of death included acute myocardial infarction or heart attack, pneumonia, and cardiorespiratory arrest.

Some also died due to intracranial hemorrhage or bleeding in the brain and cerebrovascular accidents.

One PDL died due to hypovolemic shock or excessive blood loss, while another died due to hypoxemia secondary to strangulation or lack of oxygen in the blood due to choking, while the other one died due to asphyxia, alleged suicidal hanging injury.

The bodies of these inmates remained for months at Eastern Funeral Homes as no relatives have claimed them.

The BuCor said that if a body of PDL was not claimed by their relatives after nine days, it will be buried in the Bilibid Cemetery.

“Anybody who will finally claim it, so, pureed rin naman naming ipakuha sa kanila ‘yan. I-exhume namin, ibigay na namin, kasi matagal na eh, nabubulok na ang katawan,” Catapang said.

The BuCor will also stop burying the PDLs after the Department of Justice (DOJ) planned to autopsy the bodies to know the causes of their deaths.

Catapang said they contacted the families of the PDLs who died to inform them of the incident.

Eastern Funeral Homes has asked to transfer the cadavers as these affect their business.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said Fortun would visit the establishment with DOJ staff to check the status of the bodies.

“We have to figure out logistically, how we will keep them in PGH if we have to provide air-conditioning para ma-store muna sila properly kung ano yung cremation plan if we will cremate them. Of course, we have to inform the families that these people are, their bodies are in our possession and they are being used for science if not for, to do justice for their cause,” Remulla said. —NB, GMA Integrated News