BuCor: Heart attack new top Bilibid inmate killer
Heart attack has surpassed tuberculosis or TB as the leading cause of death among prisoners at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City, the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) said on Thursday.
Based on the bureau’s data from 2022 to 2025, the most common causes of deaths at the national penitentiary were acute myocardial infarction with 445 cases followed by pneumonia, 234; acute respiratory failure, 71; cerebro vascular accident, 65; and chronic kidney disease, 61.
Also on the list are pulmonary tuberculosis (59); electrolyte imbalance (43), sepsis (40), congestive heart failure (35), and anemia (19).
While tuberculosis remains a significant health concern in penal farms as well due to overcrowding and poor ventilation, Corrections Chief Supt. Ma. Cecilia Villanueva, BuCor director for Health and Welfare Services, said that other forms of respiratory illnesses had overtaken it as among the leading causes of death.
The BuCor issued the statement after forensic pathologist Dr. Raquel Fortun on Wednesday expressed concern over an alarming number of tuberculosis cases among prisoners who died in detention.
Rotting remains
Fortun, professor and head of the University of the Philippines Manila’s pathology department, started receiving referrals from the BuCor in late 2022, starting with the case of Jun Villamor, an NBP prisoner who served as the alleged middleman in the killing of journalist Percy Lapid. An autopsy revealed his cause of death as homicide by asphyxia, not due to natural causes as initially reported by BuCor.
Since then, according to her, more bodies of prisoners have also been recovered from a funeral parlor, with more than 150 of these found in an advanced state of decomposition.
“So this started in late 2022 but it still has to be worked out because right now, the bodies are coming in trickles and definitely, they (BuCor) got a lot more deaths than what they’re sending us,” Fortun said at the turnover ceremony for equipment that had been donated to help improve the investigation into the deaths of prisoners while in BuCor’s custody.
After examining around 200 BuCor referrals, Fortun noted a troubling pattern: many of the deceased suffered from tuberculosis while some had malignant cancers.
“Every case, every death, that’s institutionalized. That’s part of the entire death investigation system. You have to examine it. Not necessarily because they were killed,” she said.
Systemic neglect
Even when the deaths appeared natural, Fortun said their findings point to the systemic neglect of prisoners.
“The fact that you’re seeing an emaciated prisoner, oh, that’s bad, just in terms of nutrition alone. And then you’re seeing tuberculosis … you have TB in jail. What about the officials working there? They go home, and they bring the TB home with them,” she added.
According to Villanueva, the BuCor continues to actively manage tuberculosis in prisons through programs and services done in partnership with various government and nongovernment organizations.
She also cited the bureau’s ongoing efforts such as active case finding, mandatory screening of all newly committed prisoners at reception and diagnostic centers, regular TB mass screenings, health education sessions and the distribution of medicines and nutritional supplements to detainees.
