SC lifts order stopping Sandiganbayan proceedings in Garcia case

The Supreme Court (SC) has lifted the stay order that prevented the Sandiganbayan from acting on matters concerning the case against retired military comptroller Carlos Garcia.

This means the Sandiganbayan can now proceed with the criminal proceedings, which were halted due to the temporary restraining order (TRO) issued by the Court in July 2013 in light of the Office of the Solicitor General’s (OSG) opposition to the plea bargain agreement between Garcia and the Office of the Ombudsman in 2010.

The SC Third Division also lifted the TRO that stopped the Sandiganbayan from implementing its December 2010 resolution granting Garcia's request for bail, according to the panel’s September 16, 2020 decision, a copy of which was released to the public only on Tuesday.

The development came after the SC dismissed the petition filed by the OSG that questioned the Sandiganbayan’s refusal to allow the OSG to intervene in the case.

The OSG had opposed the plea bargain deal, arguing it did not have the consent of the aggrieved party, the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

However, the SC ruled the OSG had “overstepped its bounds by insisting on providing additional representation.”

“Further, the Office of the Solicitor General had no power of control or supervision over the Office of the Ombudsman, an independent constitutional body. It had no authority to impose on the latter’s handling of the plea bargaining agreement, even if it strongly believed that the plea bargaining agreement was grossly disadvantageous to the government and the people’s welfare,” the SC said through Associate Justice Marvic Leonen.

The SC also said that the acceptance of a plea bargain is purely upon the discretion of the prosecutor, while its approval is subject to the judicial discretion of the court trying the facts.

“It must be emphasized that this Court will not interfere with the substance of or the wisdom behind the plea bargaining agreement, as that falls squarely within the Office of the Ombudsman’s mandate of investigating and prosecuting erring government employees,” the decision stated.

The deal allowed Garcia to plead guilty to the lesser offenses of direct bribery and facilitating money laundering, return nearly half of what he allegedly stole from government coffers or around P135.43 million, and post bail.

Garcia is accused of pocketing P303 million while still in the AFP. He served as military comptroller from 2001 to 2004.

“Here, the plea bargaining agreement appears to be procedurally sound, thus, the only remaining issue is if the prosecution was able to prove respondent Garcia's guilt for plunder and money laundering beyond reasonable doubt, thereby rendering the plea bargaining agreement unnecessary," the SC said.

"Considering the prosecution's failure to prove private respondent Garcia's guilt for plunder and money laundering beyond reasonable doubt, respondent Sandiganbayan cannot be said to have gravely abused its discretion in approving the assailed plea bargaining agreement.” —AOL, GMA News