CEBU, Philippines — Why did the Cebu provincial government release equipment used in an alleged illegal butane refilling operation that was subject of court litigation?
The Department of Energy (DOE-7) now plans to file a report to the court so the Capitol can shed light on the release of LPG tanks, refilling machines, air compressors, weighing scales, and delivery vans.
DOE-7 legal officer Mark Gamallo targets to file the court report by third quarter of this year, in time for the hearing of a case it filed against alleged violators of Presidential Decree 1865 for illegal trading of petroleum products.
In May last year, the Minglanilla police and the DOE conducted a joint raid that led to the apprehension of two individuals engaged in refilling butane canisters. They were identified as Amor Mahinay and Roger Bernabe Amadeo.
Cases were filed against them -- an administrative case handled by the Capitol and a criminal case before the Municipal Trial Court (MTC) of Minglanilla.
Gamallo recalled that DOE-7 entered into an agreement with the Capitol to fight against illegal distribution of petroleum products like LPG inside butane canisters.
The agreement permits the DOE to store the confiscated equipment to be stored at the Balili property in the City of Naga. Governor Hilario Davide III confirmed this and called DOE “a partner-agency in the thrust of fighting illegal butane trading.”
In the case of Mahinay and Amadeo, Gamallo clarified that the provincial government was not part of the apprehending team. The Capitol only came in, he said, after the two were apprehended and the Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office filed an incident report to the Provincial Legal Office (PLO) which resulted to the storage of the confiscated properties.
Mahinay “voluntarily” pleaded guilty before the court and paid a fine of P20,000 as ordered by the judge, which granted her liberty after facing the criminal charge. Her lawyer then moved to settle Mahinay’s administrative case.
Based on PENRO’s inventory, the seized items from Mahinay were worth over P2 million and impounded at the Balili property and at the Cebu International Convention Center in Mandaue City.
The PLO confirmed that it knew about the criminal case faced by Mahinay. Provincial Legal Officer Orvi Ortega said they waited for the court’s decision on the criminal case before their office made an action on Mahinay’s case.
Gamallo said he was called by Ortega when the court decision arrived and told him that the Capitol would release the items after the administrative case’s fines have been settled by Mahinay. Gamallo, as legal officer of DOE, said he disagreed with such move.
By operation of law, Gamallo claimed that the items used in the commission of a crime are to be forfeited in favor of the government under the Revised Penal Code.
He said returning the equipment is a way encouraging the perpetrators to enter into the same business of illegally refilling and trading butane products.
“The court was silent about it (release of the confiscated items after the raid),” argued Ortega.
Ortega said under a provincial ordinance, the Capitol must return the other confiscated equipment except the canisters. Should their office fail to return the equipment even after Mahinay paid the fines, the provincial government could be held liable, he added.
Gamallo said they sent a communication to the Capitol about the incident in July 2017 but up to now, they have yet to receive response. (FREEMAN)