MANILA - Kerwin Espinosa, the self-confessed drug trader who has claimed giving drug payoffs to Senator Leila De Lima, arrived at a Senate inquiry on Monday morning, just minutes ahead of Ronnie Dayan, the lawmaker's alleged bagman.
Both Espinosa and Dayan were clad in bullet proof vests as a convoy of armed policemen brought them separately to the Senate.
At a separate House inquiry last week, Dayan read an affidavit recounting his encounter with Espinosa.
Espinosa, meanwhile, separately read an affidavit exposing the intricate web of characters in his trade. before the Senate inquiry's on his father's killing, Albuera, Leyte Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr.
While both Dayan and the younger Espinosa’s claim that money from the illegal drug trade reached De Lima, their statements had glaring contradictions.
One of the biggest inconsistencies between their testimonies was the one-year difference in the time they supposedly met each other.
Kerwin said he met Dayan four times in 2015, while Dayan said his exchanges with Kerwin happened five times in 2014.
De Lima said she might not attend the Senate inquiry. She also said the conflicting testimonies of Dayan and Espinosa on how she supposedly received drug money means both of them are lying.
Ronnie Dayan, Leila De Lima, Kerwin Espinosa, Senate hearing drugs, war on drugs