Erap lawyers formally ask court for house arrest

Lawyers for ousted President Joseph Estrada asked the Sandiganbayan yesterday to have him transferred from detention in his rest house in Tanay, Rizal to his home on Polk street in North Greenhills Subdivision in San Juan.

"We have now formally asked the court to transfer him to Polk for the preparation of his testimony," Estrada counsel and former senator Rene Saguisag told reporters.

Saguisag said they have requested the court to allow Estrada to stay at his Polk mansion for "several weeks" as he gets ready to take the stand.

"His lawyers will have to meet him in Polk," he said. As the defense panel is now winding down, the lawyer has stressed it is important that the former president be well prepared to defend himself.

Saguisag added it would be better for Estrada to be in his Polk street residence to make him more accessible to his lawyers and potential witnesses.

On the other hand, Special Prosecutor Dennis Villa-Ignacio opposed the defense panel’s proposal and suggested that Estrada be instead moved back to the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC) in Quezon City, where he was detained previous to his transfer to Tanay. — Mike Frialde