Tan and 11 other suspects are facing charges for the manufacture of shabu in a warehouse in Mandaue City, considered one of the biggest shabu laboratories busted in Asia.
Paul Clarence Oaminal, legal counsel of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), said the matter is still in the hands of Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Donal Chang who has until June 29 to decide whether to approve Tan’s extradition or not.
Oaminal clarified that last April 29, the Hong Kong Eastern Magistracy found prima facie evidence to indict Tan of drug charges here, prompting it to issue the committal order favoring the Philippine government’s extradition request.
From the day the order was issued, the Hong Kong Chief Executive has two months to approve the extradition, said Oaminal.
Tan, for his part, had the chance to appeal the Magistracy’s decision until the May 16 deadline, but he opted not to file a motion for reconsideration.
Under the Agreement of Fugitive Offenders of 1997 signed between the Philippines and Hong Kong, the HK Chief Executive receives the request first and refers it to the Magistracy which, in turn, sees if it should be granted.
The matter then goes back to the Chief Executive for his imprimatur and order of execution.
Despite the uncertainties, however, the Philippine legal panel is still optimistic. Oaminal said the two-month period for Chang to decide does not mean he has to wait for the last day before rendering a decision.
"The Philippine team is very optimistic Tan will be extradited. We have a strong case against him that’s why the committal order for his extradition was granted. Besides, Tan is a Filipino; Hong Kong has nothing to lose. We expect the decision to be out either by the end of this month or early next month," Oaminal said.
But will the decision favor the Philippine government? Oaminal said it would be unlikely for Chang not to grant the request because his act is just a ministerial function.
In case Chang favors the extradition, Oaminal said Hong Kong and the Philippines, via their respective justice departments, would then agree on the time and date of implementing the extradition.
Last April 13, lawyer Joselito Enriquez filed a manifestation with the Mandaue City Regional Trial Court Branch 28 that he is appearing as Tan’s defense counsel here.
Authorities arrested Tan’s 11 co-accused during the Mandaue City raid last September, which yielded 675 kilograms of shabu worth P1.3 billion.
A few days after the raid, Tan was arrested by Hong Kong Customs authorities for possession of illegal drugs.
He is currently detained in a Hong Kong jail by virtue of the committal order from the Magistracy over his extradition case. He will remain locked up there until the extradition is finally resolved.
Tan’s co-accused in the Philippines are Chinese nationals Liu Bo, Wu Tiao and Hung Chin Chang (alias Andy Ang, Anthony Ang and Simon Lao); British Siew Kin Weng; Malaysians Liew Kam Song and Lin Li Ku; Taiwanese Bao Xiafu and Tao Fei; and Filipinos Allan Yap Garcia, Joseph Lopez, and Joseph Yu (alias Joseph Tiu and Ramon Uy Lim). They are now detained at the Mandaue City jail.
During their arraignment, they pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Warehouse owners Richard Ong and Andy Ng were later included in the case and imprisoned for allegedly allowing their place to be converted into a shabu laboratory and consenting to the illegal activities.
The two eventually got out of jail after the court allowed each of them to post P1.5-million bail. Ng will be arraigned on June 15.
If the court finds all of the accused guilty as charged, they are expected to suffer the penalty of life imprisonment to death and be fined from P500,000 to P10 million. — Freeman News Service