Corona arraignment deferred anew

MANILA, Philippines - The Court of Tax Appeals (CTA) again deferred yesterday the arraignment of ousted chief justice Renato Corona on tax evasion charges after he appealed the denial of his motion to quash the criminal information against him.

Associate Justice Caesar Casanova of the CTA Second Division gave government prosecutors 10 days to comment on Corona’s motion. 

The defense was also given 10 days upon receipt of the prosecution’s comment to file its reply before the court could decide on his appeal.

It was the second time that Corona’s arraignment was postponed.

The CTA had denied for lack of merit his motion to quash the charges for 12 counts of tax evasion filed against him.

Reody Anthony Balisi, lawyer for the former chief justice, said the facts cited in the criminal information against his client “do not constitute an offense.”

The indictments for tax evasion and failure to file income tax returns (ITRs) from 2003 to 2008 were made after the prescriptive period of three years for tax offenses, Balisi argued.

The cases arose from the Department of Justice investigation finding probable cause to charge Corona with violation of Sections 254 and 255 of the National Internal Revenue Code for allegedly failing to pay taxes.

They were based on a complaint filed by the Bureau of Internal Revenue accusing Corona  of tax evasion and willful failure to file ITRs from 2003 to 2005, 2007, 2008 and 2010.