PHOTO: Former Batangas Gov. Jose Antonio Leviste is escorted by National Bureau of Investigation agents at the Department of Justice for inquest proceedings. EDD GUMBAN]
MANILA, MAY 21, 2011 (STAR) By Aurea Calica and Edu Punay - Malacañang assured yesterday that heads will roll as President Aquino summoned Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) director Ernesto Diokno after former Batangas governor and convicted killer Jose Antonio Leviste was arrested outside the New Bilibid Prisons (NBP) Wednesday.
Leviste was charged before the Department of Justice (DOJ) yesterday with evasion of service of sentence. His driver, Nilo Solis, was also charged with the same offense as an accomplice.
Presidential Spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said the President called on Justice Secretary Leila de Lima to investigate the matter and talked with Diokno as well. The details of the President's meeting with Diokno, however, were not disclosed by the Palace.
"If you are asking for an iron hand… De Lima can be expected to come up with very strong recommendations on the conduct of treatment with respect to prisoners in Muntinlupa. And I think those who have been negligent in their duties as prisoner official should be made accountable," Lacierda said.
Lacierda said De Lima will look into the supposed special privileges given to rich and well-connected prisoners at the BuCor.
Based on an order issued by De Lima, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) arrested Leviste outside his LPL building in Makati on Wednesday afternoon. He is serving a 12-year sentence for killing his aide, Rafael de las Alas, in his office at the building in 2007.
The Court of Appeals upheld Leviste's conviction for homicide last year.
If Leviste is found guilty of violating Article 157 of the Revised Penal Code, he may get another six years on top of his earlier sentence for homicide.
Leviste was brought to the DOJ at noon yesterday for inquest proceedings before Senior State Prosecutor Lilian Doris Alejo. The case is expected to be filed in court today.
DOJ mulls charging Diokno
De Lima ordered the immediate relief of the guard assigned to Leviste, Fortunato Justo, who reportedly went into hiding. The DOJ has direct supervision over BuCor.
The incident also prompted De Lima to order an investigation to determine the possible liability of Diokno and other officials for allowing Leviste to leave the penitentiary without an official permit.
She said a special panel composed of DOJ fiscals and an officer from NBI would be created to conduct a summary investigation for three days starting Monday next week.
"The panel will immediately submit a report so we will know if we will recommend Diokno for administrative proceedings in the Palace," she said.
"There seems to be infidelity in custody of prisoners, and we will check if this can apply to him also."
De Lima explained that Diokno is a presidential appointee so only Aquino can impose sanctions on him upon recommendation of DOJ. "Heads must roll here. But we have to make sure of the facts first, which will be the basis of our report to the President," she said.
She believes that Leviste's application for pardon would suffer following his arrest, adding that his lawyer's explanation that the convict did not intend to escape is not an issue at all.
Diokno also went to the DOJ yesterday to report on the matter. He said the 71-year-old Leviste is covered by a "living out" privilege for convicted senior citizens provided in a memorandum signed by then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Under the rules, however, living-out inmates must stay within the 536-hectare prison reservation.
De Lima pointed out that this privilege should be subject to strict guidelines and allowing Leviste to go outside the NBP was a clear violation.
Leviste said he went out of the NBP despite the lack of clearance because he was suffering from a toothache and had to see his dentist.
Privilege under review
De Lima said the incident also warrants a review of the "living out" privilege. For this purpose, she created a separate special panel to review of this rule.
As for Diokno's alibi that Leviste was already enjoying the status as living-out inmate when he assumed office last year and that he had already warned the convict about it, the DOJ chief was dissatisfied.
"It's not an excuse to say it's already there when he assumed office and that he warned them already. He has to implement the rules," she said.
De Lima admitted she was "so alarmed" by the incident – especially after receiving raw information that the same special treatment is being accorded to Rolito Go, another high-profile inmate in the NBP convicted of killing Eldon Maguan during a traffic altercation in 1991.
"This is just tip of an iceberg. I'll make sure necessary changes will be in place this time. I'll be hands on (in supervising BuCor) from now on," she said.
Diokno said in a radio interview that he heard rumors of Leviste going in and out of jail right after he assumed office five months ago.
"I summoned him to remind him if (he gets) caught, his living out privileges will be cancelled. Leviste told me perhaps it was his twin who was seen (outside NBP), he said.
According to Diokno, he has been implementing reforms for NBP's 32,000 prisoners since he assumed office. "But what can I do? Nalusutan ako (He got past me)," he said. – With Aie Balagtas See, Sandy Araneta
FROM GMANEWS TV ONLINE
Former Gov Leviste charged w/ evasion of prison sentence service
(Updated 4:54 p.m.) After taking an illegal vacation in the free world, former Batangas Gov. and convict Jose Antonio Leviste was charged on Thursday with evasion of service of sentence.
Leviste, convicted of homicide in 2009 for the killing of his friend Rafael de las Alas two years earlier, was arrested on Wednesday for leaving the New Bilibid Prison without a pass.
On Thursday noon, the National Bureau of Investigation filed the evasion of service of sentence complaint with the Department of Justice, which conducted inquest proceedings against Leviste.
The inquest, conducted by Senior State Prosecutor Lilian Alejo, will determine whether there is probable cause to file charges against him for evasion of service of sentence charges. The offense is provided under the Revised Penal Code.
When there is a warrant-less arrest, as in Leviste's case, a suspect is subjected to inquest proceedings in lieu of a formal DOJ preliminary investigation.
Both inquest proceedings and preliminary inquiries seek to determine whether there is probable cause that warrants the filing of the appropriate charges against a respondent.
If a court finds Leviste guilty of evasion of service of sentence, six more years will be added to his sentence of six to 12 years for homicide.
Leaving without permission
On Wednesday afternoon, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents arrested Leviste in Makati City after finding he left the national penitentiary without a pass.
Leviste said he was in Makati City because he had an appointment with his dentist, a claim that Justice Sec. Leila de Lima found "very flimsy."
Bureau of Corrections director Ernesto Diokno said Leviste is on a "living out" status, which means that he is not detained at the maximum security facility but only within the NBP compound in Muntinlupa City. He added that at 71, Leviste is a candidate for executive clemency because NBP inmates above 70 can apply for such.
But De Lima said that Leviste's "living out" status and his application for executive clemency are still being verified.
"I am still looking into that. There is no such thing. I didn't even even know if he has an application for executive clemency. I also directed the undersecretary in charge to review these regulations about living out prisoners," said De Lima at a separate news briefing.
"Even if validity is sustained, [being a] living out prisoner does not mean you can go out. There are times within the day that you have to report so you can be accounted for, or you can be physically checked," she added.
Diokno faces probe, too
De Lima, vowing that "heads will roll" because of the incident, said she had ordered Baraan to create a panel that will conduct within three days, starting next Monday, a fact-finding inquiry into the matter. The panel will also determine Diokno's liability.
"We will know whether we will recommend Director Diokno to be subjected to disciplinary proceedings. And remember that he is a presidential appointee, so he is subject to disciplinary powers of the Office of the President, but the DOJ can always recommend [sanctions]," said De Lima.
But Diokno said he implemented the proper measures when it was first reported to him that Leviste was leaving NBP premises. He added he had warned the governor several times.
"When I first got here [as BuCor director], I received the information that high-profile prisoners are going in and out of Bilibid. One of those was Leviste. So I told him that I had such information. But he said he remains within the compound and that he had a twin. So I gave him all the warnings," Diokno said.
Rolito Go
Also on Thursday, De Lima said that he received information that convicted killer Rolito Go has also walked in and out of Bilibid without permit.
Go was found guilty of murder for the killing of businessman Eldon Maguan in 1991 over a traffic altercation.
"Last night there was an informant who talked to me... He said that it's not only Leviste [who was going in and out], but also Rolito Go," De Lima said. - RSJ/LBG/HS/KBK, GMA News
Chief News Editor: Sol Jose Vanzi
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