More claims against Philippine prison chief linked to murder

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine justice secretary says the top prison official, who is accused of plotting the killing of a radio journalist, also ordered a huge hole dug at the country’s main prison to search for rumored buried treasure. Bureau of Corrections Director General Gerald Bantag has faced a series of unusual allegations since being suspended from his post last month, including the breeding of horses and snakes at metropolitan Manila’s main prison complex. The justice secretary says Bantag also told him that a large excavation at the prison was part of a search for fabled treasure supposedly buried by Japanese occupation forces during World War II.