3 ex-Bureau of Immigration officials charged over deportation of alleged terrorist

MANILA, Philippines - The Office of the Ombudsman yesterday ordered the filing of criminal charges against three former officials of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) for their roles in the deportation of an alleged terrorist 10 years ago.

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales said she found probable cause to indict former commissioners Teodoro Delarmente, Roy Almoro and Jose Cabochan for graft over irregularities in the issuance of medical passes and a summary deportation order (SDO) to a certain Vo Van Duc, a suspected terrorist convicted of unlawful manufacture and possession of explosives.

She also ordered to have former Philippine National Police Civil Security Unit acting chief Wendy Rosario, former BI chief of staff Alejandro Fernandez, former acting warden Noel Espinosa, former legal aide Richard Perez, former security escort Francis Agana and former confidential agent Joselito Pagaduan charged with negligence.

Anti-graft probers learned during investigation that Delarmente, Rosario, Espinosa and Agana were responsible for the issuance of medical passes on several dates in 2005 to Van Duc despite the absence of the required recommendation of the BI physician and for allowing him temporary liberty for three weeks.

“Apparently, the medical passes issued by Delarmente had no basis but for the ‘request’ made by Van Duc himself. Further, the medical passes made it possible for Van Duc to leave the BI Detention Center and enjoy the comforts of staying in an apartelle,” a part of the ruling read.

The investigators also alleged that “the respondents, conspiring with Delarmente, acted with manifest partiality and evident bad faith in giving Van Duc unwarranted benefit.”

As for Delarmente, Almoro, Cabochan, Fernandez and Perez, they were found to have violated the rules in summary deportation proceedings when the SDO was issued based on an outdated four-year-old charge sheet and without the conduct of any hearing.