Filtered By: Topstories
News

Ecleo gets 31 years in jail for graft


The Sandiganbayan on Friday sentenced Ruben Ecleo Jr. to 31 and a half years in prison over allegedly anomalous construction deals he entered into when he was town mayor of San Jose, Surigao del Norte between 1991-94.

The antigraft court, in a 28-page decision penned by Associate Justice Diosdado Peralta, junked Ecleo’s claim of good faith when he approved fund releases totaling nearly P8 million for three construction projects that were declared anomalous by a team of government auditors.

Ecleo, accompanied by some 20 supporters, calmly received his sentence.

Despite the conviction, he was not taken directly to the National Bilibid Prisons in Muntinlupa City as the court allowed him provisional liberty for the duration of his appeal. The prosecution did not object.

Ecleo is "supreme master" of the Philippine Benevolent Missionaries Association (PBMA). He is also a son of Surigao del Norte Rep. Glenda Ecleo.

The 51-year-old Ecleo gained national attention when 22 of his followers and a policeman were killed in a firefight on June 2002 at the PBMA compound in Dinagat island off Surigao del Norte. Unharmed, he surrendered shortly after the incident.

Police and military forces then were trying to arrest him as a suspect in the brutal murder of his wife, Alona Bacolod Ecleo, and her parents.

Unfinished projects

Ecleo was accused of favoring private contractor Ricardo Santillano of PBMA Builders when he authorized the disbursement of P4 million as payment for the construction of a public market when the project was still unfinished.

Auditors found that completed portions of the project amounted to only P3.56 million, which resulted in injury to the government in the amount of P444,575.

Also in question was the overpayment to PBMA Builders of P3.85 million supposedly for a new municipal building when the contract price was only P3.68 million. It was also revealed that project accomplishment was only 37.38 percent, with an assessed value of P1.44 million.

The third case involved the release of P300,000 for the repair of a building owned by the PBMA Women’s League, a private organization, although Ecleo claimed he was made to believe that the money was for the maintenance of the municipal government’s guesthouse.

'Incredible' defense

The Sandiganbayan called Ecleo’s defense "incredible" after prosecutors pointed out that the municipality did not even own a guesthouse.

Santillano was also convicted in two counts of graft along with Anadelia Navarra, municipal planning and development coordinator.

Another defendant, Arsenia Orejas, municipal treasurer under Ecleo, remains at large and is the subject of a manhunt by virtue of an arrest warrant issued by the anti-graft court.

"It can only be deduced that accused Ecleo Jr. was directly responsible for the overpayment. Undoubtedly, accused Ecleo Jr. was actuated with evident bad faith and caused the giving of unwarranted benefits advantage or preference to accused Santillano," the court ruled.

Aside from the prison term, Ecleo and his co-accused were likewise ordered to indemnify the municipality in the amount of P2.86 million equivalent to the excess payments made to the contractor.

The court also ordered the defendant’s bail bonds confiscated as a result of their conviction.

Parricide

Ecleo is also facing trial before the Cebu regional trial court for parricide in connection with the brutal slaying of his wife, Alona Bacolod, whose decomposing body was found on January 5, 2002 wrapped in a black garbage bag and dumped in a ravine.

Autopsy reports established that the victim was killed by strangulation.

The local court however allowed Ecleo’s release ‘for humanitarian reasons’ although he had to post a P1 million bail.

At the hearing in Sandiganbayan yesterday, Ecleo’s lawyers tried to prevent the sentencing claiming his client was suffering from hypertension.

The court however threw the defense motion out noting that Ecleo was obviously healthy enough as he was able to present himself for the promulgation.

In Ecleo’s trial for parricide, a government prosecutor was killed, with former mayor’s supporters suspected of involvement. -GMANews.TV

Tags: ecleo, pbma
LOADING CONTENT