Isabela vice mayor-elect surrenders to court amid arrest warrant for cybercrime complaint

Isabela Vice Mayor-elect Jeryll Harold Respicio voluntarily surrendered at a Manila Court on Tuesday in relation to the cybercrime charges filed against him by the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

Respicio arrived at the Manila Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 34 after learning of a signed arrest warrant against him for allegedly violating Article 134 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC).

“Meron na pong pirmadong warrant ang Court sa Branch 34, kaya ako nag-voluntary surrender,” Respicio told reporters. 

(We learned there is a signed warrant of arrest here in Branch 34, so we voluntarily surrendered.)

“Ito po ay isang process para hindi ka na hulihin at hindi ka na i-commit sa loob ng jail, pwede ka mag-voluntary surrender at magbayad ng bail,” he said. 

(This is a process where they will no longer arrest us and commit us to jail.)

Comelec, through Task Force Katotohanan, Katapatan at Katarungan (KKK) sa Halalan, filed cybercrime charges against Respicio in February over his social media videos allegedly saying he can manipulate the automated counting machines (ACMs) for Eleksyon 2025. 

The lawyer likewise claimed there were backdoor programs for the manipulation of the ACMs and supposedly demonstrated how to exploit the election results in one of his videos. 

“Magpo-post kami ng bail today. Dalawa po, P32,000 kada isang kaso. Dalawang video kasi yun,” the Respicio said. 

(We will post bail today. That would be P32,000 for each of the counts of the case.)

Respicio maintained that his social media videos were not “untrue,” as he claimed the poll body “adhered” to his appeal to include a provision in its elections resolution prohibiting the ACMs from being connected to the internet before and during the printing of the election returns. 

“Asahan nyo po mga kababayan na lalaban tayo hanggang sa huli. Hanggang sa ang katotohanan ay lumabas at magpapatuloy si Atty. Harold Respicio na ilabas ang lahat... Hanggang mailabas natin ang lahat ng pagkukulang ng Comelec sa nangyaring elections nitong 2025 para sa susunod na election sa 2028, hindi na ito uli mangyayari,” he added. 

(I will fight until the end, until the truth comes out and we unearth all the shortcomings of the Comelec this election and prevent a repeat of them in the 2028 polls.)

Comelec

Comelec Chair George Garcia previously slammed Respicio’s claims, saying the respondent might have a “misunderstanding or non-understanding” of the process of transmitting of election returns.

“Mukhang ang kaniyang understanding, magta-transmit agad ang bawat makina tapos after ng transmission, ‘tsaka magp-print ng election returns. Baliktad po. Election returns muna bago ang transmission,” said Garcia.

(He might have a misunderstanding of the process. The election returns will be printed before its transmission.)

“Ibig sabihin, bago mag-transmit alam na ng lahat ang boto sa bawat presinto. Paano mo siya maha-hack? Paano mo mababago? Paano mo mapapakialamanan ang results kung ganitong alam na ng lahat…kung ano ang results?” he added.

(This means that the results will be issued before the transmission. How will he hack or change that when everyone knows the votes?) —VAL, GMA Integrated News

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