Kerwin Espinosa, a self-confessed drug lord, has withdrawn all drug claims against incarcerated opposition Senator Leila de Lima.
Espinosa disowned his sworn statements during the Senate joint committee hearings on the killing of his father, Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr., in a counter-affidavit filed with the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday, claiming that he was “coerced, pressured, intimidated, and seriously threatened” by the police to implicate de Lima.
“Any and all of his statements given during the Senate hearings, or in the form of sworn written affidavits, against Senator Leila de Lima are not true. He has no dealings with Sen. de Lima and has not given her any money at any given time,” the document stated.
“Any statement he made against the Senator is false and was the result of pressure, coercion, intimidation and serious threats to his life and family members from the police who instructed him to implicate the Senator into the illegal drug trade,” it added.
Espinosa testified in a series of Senate hearings in 2016 that de Lima was involved in the illegal drug trade inside the New Bilibid Prison during her time as Justice Secretary under late President Benigno Simeon “Noynoy” Aquino III’s administration.
Kerwin Espinosa retracts accusations vs. Leila De Lima
He also accused de Lima of funneling P8 million to him through her former chauffeur and security assistant Ronnie Dayan for her senatorial campaign.
In his counter-affidavit, Kerwin Espinosa stated that he had “no other option but to manufacture lies” because he was afraid for his family and his life, noting that his father was slain on November 5, 2016, just 18 days before the legislative inquiry.
Kerwin Espinosa stated he was instructed to “cooperate” or he and certain family members would “suffer the same fate” as his father.
Since 2017, De Lima, the senator who headed the Senate investigation into suspected extrajudicial murders in the Duterte administration’s drug campaign, has been incarcerated.
The Muntinlupa court has already dismissed one of the three cases against De Lima.
Several organizations, including the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights, have demanded her release, claiming that her detention was “politically motivated.”
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