GUILTY TO LESSER OFFENSES: EX-AFP GEN GARCIA IS NOW FREE ON P60,000 BAIL
MANILA, DECEMBER 18, 2010 (TRIBUNE) By Gerry Baldo - Shortly after pleading guilty to lesser offenses under a plea bargain, retired Maj. Gen. Carlos F. Garcia is now a free man even as anti-graft court Sandiganbayan allowed him to post bail while his cases are being heard.
Sandiganbayan Sheriff Edgardo Urieta said that the release order on Garcia was received by the Custodial Center at Camp Crame in Quezon City around 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
"Garcia posted P60,000 for his temporary liberty immediately after he entered a plea bargaining agreement with the Court," Urieta said yesterday.
Garcia, after more than five years of being in jail for a string of criminal charges, including plunder for amassing an estimated P300 million as a comptroller of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, pleaded guilty to indirect bribery and violation of Sec. A and B of the Anti-Money
Laundering Act.
The general's crimes came to light after his two sons were stopped by US customs police trying to smuggle $100,000 into the United States in 2003.
Garcia's sons and wife are also detained in the Philippines but there is a pending motion for the charges against them to be dismissed.
By admitting guilt on lesser charges, Garcia also avoided being tried for "plunder" or massive corruption, punishable by life in jail.
"He has not yet been sentenced but he has entered a plea of guilty and it has been accepted by the court," Renato Bocar, the court clerk for the Sandiganbayan anti-graft court, said.
By pleading guilty to the lesser charges of "direct bribery" and money laundering, and agreeing to return some of the plundered funds, Garcia could serve as little as six years in jail, Bocar said.
In theory, he could even walk free because he has already served about six years in prison during the criminal investigation and trial, Bocar added.
Bocar said he did not know how much money Garcia had agreed to return to the government. Under the plea bargain Garcia will win temporary liberty until his sentencing, which has not been scheduled.
Sec. 4-A of AMLA refers to direct transaction of laundered money, penalized by seven to 14 years. Sec. 4-B refers to the act of allowing such a transaction to happen, and is penalized by four to seven years.
The resolution of the court says:"This pertains to the Urgent Motion to Post Bail filed by accused MGen. Carlos F Garcia who invokes his constitutional right to bail after having pleaded guilty to Direct Bribery under Articel 210 of the Revised Penal Code and Violation of Section 4(b) of R.A. No. 9160 or the Anti Money Laundering Law."
Malacanang showed indifference over the Sandiganbayan's decision to grant Garcia's plea bargain.
Valte said the Aquino administration has no involvement with respect to Garcia's case and so they would rather not comment on it since that particular matter is within the purview of the judiciary.
"We do not see it fit to comment on a matter that does not involve us… From what I understand the plea bargaining that happened before the Sandiganbayan has been in the works for quite some time. So we have no involvement on that. When we came in, it was already in place and I believe that the final step was just accomplished today," Valte said in response to a question whether the Aquino government views this particular development as a setback in its campaign against graft and corruption.
"In the Light of the aforesaid circumstances, and considering that the offences to which the accused pleaded guilty are bailable, the court hereby resolves to allow accused MGen Garcia to post bail for his provisional liberty in the amount of P30,000.00 for each and in cash. Further, the issuance of a personal check by Atty. Constantino B. De Jesus, the defense councel, to cover the total amount of P60,000.00 shall be accepted," the same resolution stated.
Records at the Second Division showed that the plea bargaining agreement between Garcia and the court started as early as August 11, 2010 but has been kept away from the media.
The resolution to allow Garcia to post bail was signed Associate Justice Teresita V. Diaz-Baldos and was concurred in Presiding Justice Edilberto G. Sandoval as chairman of the Second Division and Associate Justice Samuel R. Martires. It was promulgated on December 14, 2010.
Urieta said that the Second Division of the Court has ordered the Sherrif to effect the release of Garcia.
"You are hereby directed to discharge from custody of the accused, Major General Carlos Garcia, he having posted the required cash binds for his temporary liberty in the total amount of sixty thousand pesos under Official Receipt Nos. 2313532 L and 2313533 L both dated December 16, 2010 as affecting CC No. 28107 and SB-09-CRM-0194 respectively, unless there being other valid reason (s) for further detaining him," the release order reads.
On Thursday, Garcia entered guilty pleas to direct bribery and violation of Sec. 4-B of the Anti-Money Laundering Act before the anti-graft court.
"Yes," said Garcia after Sandoval asked him about his pleas to the lesser offenses.
Last Thursday, the Sandiganbayan Second Division was supposed to promulgate the cases of plunder and violation of Sec. 4-A of the AMLA against Garcia until pleas were made.
During arraignment, Garcia entered not guilty pleas to the charges of plunder which is punishable with life imprisonment and violation of Sec. 4-A of AMLA which has corresponding six years and one day to 10 years under the Revised Penal Code.
Former Ombudsman Simeon Marcelo described the Sandiganabayan decision, meanwhile, as disadvantageous to the government because even if the court did not enter into a plea bargaining agreement, Garcia's properties are already the subject of forfeiture proceedings.
Marcelo said that the Court's resolution was a violation of the Rules of Procedure.
"The court should have dismissed it right away," Marcelo said referring to the plea bargaining move.
" By simply giving it (plea bargain) due course… by considering it for approval, that is already a violation of the Rules of Procedure," the former Ombudsman said.
Marcelo explained that plea bargaining may be allowed only before trial.
"In this case, the prosecution has completed presenting evidence. Most importantly, the court has already ruled that the government presented sufficient evidence to convict the accused. There was already that pronouncement," he said.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), meanwhile, stated it expected "good judgment" from the Sandiganbayan on the Garcia case.
AFP Vice Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Reynaldo Mapagu said the case of Garcia is not yet over after he pleaded guilty to lesser offense of graft before the Sandiganbayan.
"We expect that the court will, on the basis of evidence plus testimonies, will come up with a good judgment on this case," said Mapagu.
"Since he pleaded guilty to a lesser offense, he can post bail but it does not mean that the case is already finished, there will be continuing litigation…what do we expect, then I think the end of justice to be served regardless how high your rank is…all is fair regardless of ranks…so the ends of justice will be served," added Mapagu.
The prosecutors did not oppose the guilty pleas to lesser offenses which were deemed submitted for resolution before the Court's second Division.
During his arraignment, Garcia had pleaded not guilty to the charges of plunder and violation of the provisions of the Anti-Money Laundering Act.
Plunder is a non-bailable capital offense punishable with reclusion perpetua or life imprisonment of at least 30 years. Direct bribery, on the other hand, is punishable with prison mayor of from six years and one day up to 12 years of jail term under the Revised Penal Code.
A provision in AMLA penalizes direct transaction of laundered money by seven to 14 years. The act of allowing such a transaction to happen is also penalized by four to seven years imprisonment.
The guilty pleas came amid reports that Garcia has executed deeds of conveyance for the transfer of some of his assets in favor of the government.
This was seen as part of a plea bargaining agreement being forged by the prosecution panel and Garcia and his co-defendants in the case.
Garcia was charged with plunder in April 2005 along with wife Clarita, and sons Ian Carl and Timothy Mark, and later with violation of AMLA with his wife, two sons and a third son, Juan Carlo.
Investigators also found out that Garcia and his wife have transferred $500,000 to the United States in seven tranches from November 1993 to January 2004.
Ian Carl and Timothy Mark, for their part, were held by the US Customs and Border Patrol officials on Dec. 19, 2003 for trying to sneak in $100,000 through the San Francisco International Airport. Mario J. Mallari, Gerry Baldo, Aytch S. de la Cruz
----------------------------------------------------------
© Copyright, 2010 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
All rights reserved
----------------------------------------------------------
PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE [PHNO] WEBSITE
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/phnotweet
This is the PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE (PHNO) Mailing List.
To stop receiving our news items, please send a blank e-mail addressed to: phno-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
Please visit our homepage at: http://www.newsflash.org/
(c) Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
-------------------------------------------------------------
