Filtered By: Topstories
News

SolGen Calida asks CA to order re-arrest of ex-Palawan gov Joel Reyes


Solicitor General Jose Calida has asked the Court of Appeals (CA) to order the re-arrest of former Palawan governor Joel Reyes who was released from jail early this month after the tribunal nullified his arrest in the case involving the killing of broadcaster and environmentalist Gerry Ortega in 2011.

Calida filed the motion for reconsideration to the Court's January 4 decision on Monday, two days before the seventh anniversary of the death of Ortega.

In his appeal, Calida argued that the CA Former Special 11th Division erred when it ruled that the Puerto Princesa City Regional Trial Court Branch 52 gravely abused its discretion in finding probable cause for the issuance of arrest warrant for murder against Reyes.

Calida said the ruling imposed its own standard of probable cause different from that required by law and one not warranted by the circumstances of the case.

"It bears repeating: the admissibility of evidence, their evidentiary weight, probative value, and the credibility of witnesses are matters that are best left to be resolved in a full-blown trial," the motion read.

"In order to determine probable cause, it suffices that it is believed that the act or omission complained of constitutes the very offense charged. However, this Honorable Court gravely erred when it considered all these evidentiary matters and resorted to calibrations of the rules of evidence in determining the existence of probable cause."

The CA also failed to consider the Supreme Court's pronouncement related to the case in 2016 that the trial court had already acquired jurisdiction and had already made its determination of probable cause, according to the government. 

"It must be noted that while leaving room for further remedies by the petitioners, the Supreme Court directed that trial should proceed," the motion stated.

‘Fragmented analysis’

Voting 3 to 2, the CA special division said there was no evidence against the former governor aside from the testimony of Rodolfo Edrad Jr. alias Bumar, a former bodyguard of Reyes who was allegedly instructed by the former governor to form a team that would kill Ortega.

The appellate court found Edrad's testimony riddled with inconsistencies, saying it cannot be "validly used as evidence against Reyes."

However, Calida said the CA "conducted a fragmented analysis" of the evidence before "isolating each piece of evidence and concluding that it [Bumar's testimony] alone does not prove probable cause."

"After recognizing that Bumar's statement directly connects petitioner [Reyes] to the crime, this Honorable Court proceeded to analyze the evidentiary value of each statement, focusing on its alleged inconsistencies to Bumar's statement," the motion stated.

Insisting there is probable cause to put Reyes on trial, Calida cited the dissenting opinions of Associate Justices Maria Filemona Singh and Marie Christine Azcarraga-Jacob who said that the statements of other witnesses such as gunman Marlon Recamata and hit team member, Dennis Aranas, indicated Reyes as the mastermind of the crime. 

"Bumar's testimony is also replete with details that only a participant in the crime, and someone close to the petitioner, could have known. This, in conjunction with the statements of other participants, serves to strengthen Bumar's credibility, which includes his unwavering certitude that petitioner masterminded the murder of Dr. Gerry Ortega and set it in motion," the solicitor general said.

Reyes' flight from the country “is a strong indication of his guilt” that should have also been considered by the CA in determining probable cause against him, Calida said. Reyes and his brother, former Coron town mayor Mario Reyes, were arrested in Thailand in September 2015 after years in hiding.

Calida also said the government's appeal does not violate Reyes' right against double jeopardy, a legal principle in which a person cannot be tried for the same crime twice.

"Here, the dismissal of the case against petitioner was done after he had sought the same by initially filing a motion with the trial court and by subsequently filing this petition. Hence, for said dismissal to operate as a dismissal on the merits, it must be shown that it was due to a violation of the petitioner's right to speedy trial or that a demurrer to evidence was granted," the motion stated.

"As stated earlier, none of these recognized exceptions are present."

Ortega was slain on January 24, 2011 while shopping in a used clothes store in Puerto Princesa.

He was allegedly silenced for his radio commentaries about Reyes' supposed misuse of the share of the provincial government in the proceeds from the operation of the Malampaya natural gas plant off Palawan. —ALG, GMA News

LOADING CONTENT