CEBU, Philippines - The Supreme Court granted the petition filed by Cebu City Councilor Nestor Archival requesting to transfer from Argao town to Cebu City the hearing of the cases filed against former officials of the Highway Patrol Group-7 accused of being behind the ambush of lawyer Noel Archival.
“Note and grant the petition dated 22 October 2014 of Nestor D. Archival, City Councilor, Cebu City, requesting the transfer of venue of Crim. Case No. AR-5473 from Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 26, Argao, Cebu, to the RTC of Cebu City, Cebu,” read the SC notice penned by deputy division clerk of court Teresita Aquino-Tuazon.
Tuazon directed the clerk of court of RTC Branch 26 in Argao town to forward the records of the case to the Office of the Clerk of Court in RTC Cebu City.
Lawyer Democrito Barcenas, one of the legal counsels of the Noel Archival, who was killed in an ambush while he and his staff were traversing Barangay Corro, Dalaguete on February 18, 2014, said after the records of the case will be forwarded to RTC Cebu City, the cases will be raffled among the RTC branches.
The HPG-7 officials accused are Senior Superintendent Romualdo Iglesia, Senior Inspector Joselito Lerion, and PO1 Alex Bacani. They are tagged in the killing of Noel, his driver Alejandro Jayme, and his bodyguard Candido Miñoz.
Paolo Cortes, the on-call assistant of Noel, survived the attacked.
Regional Trial Court Judge Maximo Perez of Branch 26 earlier inhibited from handling the multiple murder and frustrated murder charges after he issued the warrant of arrest against the accused, in order to avoid any biases.
In his one-page order, he said he already forwarded his inhibition to the Supreme Court through Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez, Deputy Court Administrator Jenny Lind Aldecoa-Delorino, and to Office of the Court Administrator Chief of Office, Legal Office Wilhelmina D. Geronga.
“A perusal of the record shows that the presiding judge of RTC Branch 26 Argao, Cebu, has inhibited from presiding over the above-entitled case, to preclude claim of bias or prejudice, and the said inhibition has been forwarded to the Supreme Court,” Perez said.
Perez added because of his inhibition, the ex parte motion to set arraignment with manifestation filed by the private prosecutors dated January 7, 2015, as well as the other pending motions, will be held in abeyance pending designation of a new presiding judge.
Meanwhile, Tuazon denied the request of Bacani and Iglesia’s camp to transfer the venue of hearing of the cases to Manila.
Barcenas said the whereabouts of the accused are still unknown and that they will write a letter to Police Director General Ricardo Marquez for their arrest. (FREEMAN)