DILG chief: PNP Custodial Center up for demolition
The Philippine National Police Custodial Center in Camp Crame, where high-profile detainees had been held, will be demolished to make way for the construction of a new headquarters for the national police, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said on Tuesday.
“We’re just getting the certification from the Department of Public Works and Highways that the building has already been condemned,” Remulla told reporters in a briefing.
“The building is very old and the PNP has a budget to build a new headquarters. It’s cramped here now, so they will be constructing a new building there and that’s the proposed site for the new structure,” he added, noting that the demolition is expected to begin sometime this month.
Remulla made the announcement as he ruled out holding former Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. at the PNP Custodial Center.
Revilla surrendered to the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group on Monday night after the Sandiganbayan issued arrest warrants against him and six others over alleged irregularities in a P92.8-million flood control project in Bulacan province. The antigraft court on Tuesday ordered Revilla’s detention at the New Quezon City Jail on Payatas Road in Quezon City.
De Lima, Guo, Quiboloy
The PNP Custodial Center also served as detention to other high-profile individuals, including former Sen. and now Mamamayang Liberal Rep. Leila de Lima. She was detained in the custodial facility from 2017 to 2023 for drug-related charges. De Lima was eventually cleared of all criminal charges.
Other high-profile individuals detained in the PNP Custodial Center recently were former Bamban Mayor Alice Guo and alleged sex offender and preacher Apollo Quiboloy. They were both later transferred to the Pasig City jail.
Revilla himself was detained at the PNP Custodial Center in 2014 in the wake of the pork barrel scam. He was released in December 2018 after being acquitted by the court.
Another senator implicated in that corruption scandal, Jinggoy Estrada, was also held at the center but was released in 2017 after posting a bond.
Payatas jail
In October 2025, Remulla said the New Quezon City Jail in Payatas will house those who may be indicted in the ghost flood control scandal. During an inspection of the facility with reporters, Remulla said the jail was the closest and “most convenient” for the Sandiganbayan antigraft court.
Remulla said the new facility had 80 unoccupied rooms that can hold 10 detainees each.
The facility also had a supply of purified drinking water, an area for exercise, and private quarters detainees may confer with their lawyers, Remulla added.
He said visitors may bring detainees cooked and packed food five times a week, except for Mondays and Fridays.
Remulla also said cell phones, tablets, and all communication devices will not be allowed—save for a landline that can be used only upon request to the warden.
The 2.4-hectare New Quezon City Jail was officially turned over by the local government to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology in March 2022. It was initially meant to decongest the old city jail in Kamuning. —WITH A REPORT FROM INQUIRER RESEARCH
Sources: Inquirer Archives, PNA, quezoncity.gov.ph
