Tarlac judge in bribe case hangs self

TARLAC CITY — A 46-year-old Municipal Trial Court judge, who was earlier nabbed by local agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and charged with bribery, hanged himself last week.

MTC Judge Arnel Peralta, of Paniqui town, was found lifeless, with a nylon cord tied around his neck, inside his residence last Wednesday morning.

His wife, Teresita, rushed him to a nearby hospital, but doctors declared him dead on arrival.

Investigators ruled out foul play in the incident, saying the judge’s death was "plain suicide."

Peralta, however, was said to have received death threats. Police have yet to get the details from his family.

In an NBI entrapment last April 8, the judge was caught in the act of receiving P10,000 in marked money from Dr. Luz Imelda Macaraeg, a daughter of former Moncada mayor Wilfredo Macaraeg, inside his chamber.

The alleged extortion was reportedly arranged through one Jaime Cuchapin, a former security guard at the Paniqui municipal hall, supposedly in exchange for a ruling on Macaraeg’s favor in a slander case pending before Peralta’s sala.

Macaraeg sought the help of Paniqui Mayor Elpidio Ibarra who, in turn, asked lawyer Florencio Binalay, the NBI’s provincial head, to carry out an entrapment plan in the afternoon of April 8.

Peralta was arrested after receiving 10 P1,000 bills laced with ultraviolet powder. Binalay said the judge later tested positive for ultraviolet powder.

Peralta was detained for more than 24 hours at the NBI’s provincial office here.

He later posted bail of P100,000 for his temporary liberty on charges of direct extortion and violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.