00:00Former Director of the Bureau of Corrections, General Bantag, is close to being arrested.
00:05This was stated by DILG Secretary John Macrimoya after several months of hiding by Bantag.
00:11The Philippine National Police, or PNP, has reportedly been searching various areas in the country to find him.
00:17According to PNP spokesperson and Police Regional Office 3 Regional Director, Police Brigadier General,
00:22Dean Fajardo, the PNP is checking several areas in the north where Bantag may be hiding.
00:28There is still no education that Bantag has left the country, and based on the information from the Immigration Department.
00:33However, the PNP is not ruling out the possibility that Bantag might have used a backdoor to leave the country,
00:40especially since he is a former soldier and might be armed.
00:46He is a former marine soldier, he graduated from the academy, so definitely in terms of handling guns,
00:54he knows how to handle a gun.
00:57But as we said, hopefully, if he is listening now, if his family is listening,
01:01his loved ones, those who are close to him,
01:04we hope that he won't get sick or worse, that he won't get hurt on the other side.
01:13We are openly appealing to him to face the music,
01:17and anyway, he will be given a chance by the court to face this complaint,
01:22that is part of due process.