Family asks court to free 81-year-old man ‘wrongfully’ arrested by PNP

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Prudencio Cebu Calubid Jr. has been detained at the Manila City Jail since December 2024, even after his family presented proof that he is not NDFP consultant Prudencio Calubid who has gone missing since his abduction in 2006

MANILA, Philippines – The family of an elderly man is seeking his release after his alleged wrongful arrest by the Philippine National Police (PNP).

The family of 81-year-old Prudencio Cebu Calubid Jr. has filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus with the Court of Appeals (CA) to seek his release. His family lodged the immediate relief because he was wrongfully arrested, arguing that Calubid is not the person named in the arrest warrant issued by the Manila Regional Trial Court.

Writ of habeas corpus — an extraordinary legal remedy often used by activists — is used against wrongful or illegal detention. It has the power to compel an agency or body to produce a person held under custody.

In the family’s petition filed through the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL), the family said police falsely identified Calubid as Prudencio Calubid, a National Democratic Front of the Philippines’ (NDFP) consultant abducted in 2006, who remains missing up to this day.

Calubid was arrested by the police in December 2024, despite his and family’s defense that he was not the same NDFP consultant the police were looking for. He even presented government-issued identification cards, documents, and records that vouch for his identity and residence, but to no avail.

According to the NUPL, the real Prudencio Calubid had a P7.8-million bounty and was part of the PNP’s most wanted list. In the petition, the family and the lawyers argued that the police pursued detaining the elderly man, despite knowing that he was not the same person in the wanted list.

“The continued detention of Prudencio Jr. is not the result of a mistaken identity; it is a case of deliberate misrepresentation, carried out in disregard of truth and due process,” NUPL lawyer Julian Agpalo said.

Calubid’s arrest

Known as “Pruding” to his loved ones and close friends, Calubid was arrested by members of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) at his residence in Gordon Heights, Olongapo City, on December 7, 2024.

The cops presented a warrant for Prudencio Calubid, so the family argued that it was not their patriarch because his full name is Prudencio Cebu Calubid Jr.

Even though he was not the subject of the said warrant, Calubid cooperated and went with the cops to clear his name. However, the police did not believe his defense and he was brought to Camp Crame where he was temporarily held.

Calubid was later brought to the Manila City Jail, where he’s currently detained.

In a Meta post, Calubid’s daughter, Setti, questioned his father’s arrest and urged authorities to probe the incident. Setti said his father was not the same person in the warrant because he has been living in Zambales for over 50 years.

“Kung sasabihin ‘nyong bakit hindi na lang patunayan sa korte, ang isasagot po namin sa inyo ay amin pong sinusubukan. Pero matanda na ang aming ama na 81 years old na. Hindi namin alam kung hanggang kailan pa namin siya makakasama. Marami na rin siyang karamdaman at naka-wheelchair na dahil hindi na siya makatayo,” Setti pleaded.

(If you will tell us to prove our point in the court, we will tell you that we will try. But our father is already old, he’s already 81 years old. We don’t know until when he will be with us. He suffers from many ailments and is already in a wheelchair because he can no longer stand.)

“Sa kabila ng mga hawak naming ebidensya hindi ‘nyo pinakawalan, bakit? Kasi may bounty na ₱7.8M ang hinahanap nilang kapangalan ng tatay ko? Isa lang si tatay na nakaparaming mistaken of identity na kaso sa Pilipinas dahil sa bounty. Humihingi ako ng pabor sa lahat ng nakakakilala sa amin. I-share ‘nyo po ang panawagan ng aming pamilya,” she added.

(Despite the evidence he possess, you choose not to believe us. Why? Is it because of the P7.8-million bounty for my father’s namesake? My father is only one of the many mistaken identity cases in the Philippines arrested due to bounty. I am asking a favor from those who know us. Share the appeal of our family.)

The wanted Prudencio Calubid is part of human rights group Karapatan’s list of NDFP consultants who were either extrajudicially killed or remain missing.

It was earlier reported that Prudencio Calubid, along with other NDFP consultants, were allegedly abducted by armed assailants believed to be part of the military. The pack was kidnapped along Maharlika Highway, between Quezon and Camarines Norte, as they traveled from Metro Manila to the Bicol region. – Rappler.com