DOJ doubts Leviste illness

The Department of Justice (DOJ) led by Senior State Prosecutor Emmanuel Velasco is not convinced that former Batangas Gov. Jose Antonio Leviste is suffering from low blood pressure.

In a text message, Velasco said Leviste’s declaration that he suddenly suffered from low blood pressure, which prompted the guards of the Makati City Jail to rush him to the Makati Medical Center (MMC) on Friday night, is highly questionable.

Velasco said he will ask the Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC) to order the head of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) in Makati to explain why Leviste was rushed to the hospital without a court order: "There is definitely something mysterious about this. We will definitely question it in court."

Velasco said Leviste’s continued stay at the MMC "smacks of special treatment for a moneyed and influential accused. It is not fair to the rest of thousands of prisoners throughout the country who don’t have the capacity and influence to suddenly complain of low blood pressure and thereafter dutifully taken on by prison guards to enjoy the comfort of a warm hospital bed inside an airconditioned room."

Lawyer Henry Capela, Leviste’s legal counsel, confirmed that Leviste is still at the MMC.

Efforts by The STAR to get more information from Capela about Leviste’s health proved futile, as Capela did not reply to The STAR’s queries.

Capela also did not make himself available for telephone interview, after sending this reporter a text message saying Leviste was not yet released from the MMC.

Leviste was rushed to the MMC by jail guards at 6 p.m. Friday after his blood pressure allegedly dropped to 90 over 60.

He is detained at the Makati City Jail for the murder of his long-time aide, Rafael de las Alas. Leviste admitted he had fatally shot De las Alas on Jan. 12, but said he did so in self-defense.

Makati Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 150 Judge Elmo Alameda granted last Feb. 13 Leviste’s motion and deferred his arraignment for 30 days.

Leviste’s legal team led by Manuel Singson intends to file a motion for reconsideration on Alameda’s order junking Leviste’s motion seeking to have the judge inhibit himself from handling the case. – Jose Rodel Clapano