Ampatuans’ bank, assets to stay on ice till December, CA orders
MANILA, Philippines—The Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal filed by the Ampatuan clan to lift the freeze order issued over their bank accounts and other financial assets.
In a 67-page resolution, the appeals court Special 2nd Division, through Associate Justice Celia Librea-Leagogo, extended the freeze order to six months, or up to Dec. 2, 2011.
Associate Justices Bienvenido Reyes and Elihu Ybanez concurred with the ruling.
The appeals court said the respondents’ various motions to lift freeze order were denied for lack of merit.
It added that the determination of probable cause in a freeze order does not depend on the conduct of lifestyle check, or money laundering, or forfeiture proceedings before the Office of the Ombudsman.
“A freeze order is an extraordinary provisional relief provided by law, which does not depend on the pendency of a regular action as one of the incidents,” the appeals court explained.
But the appeals court lifted the freeze order on the payroll account of Dr. Tahir B. Sulaik at the Development Bank of the Philippines, for humanitarian reasons.
Covered by the CA freeze order are the Ampatuans’ accounts in 32 banking, insurance and financial institutions, most of them located in several provinces in Mindanao.
The court temporarily stopped as well, the financial transactions of Deal Gems and Jewelries Pawnshop and Maguindanao Electric Cooperative, which the Ampatuans reportedly own.
The order also involved the Philippine National Police’s Firearms and Explosives Office, Land Transportation Office, Registry of Deeds offices in Davao City, Maguindanao and Cotabato City, and the provincial government of Maguindanao.
The agencies were directed to furnish the court and AMLC with a report containing bank account numbers with the names of its registered owners and amounts they contained, properties and other important information.
A lifestyle check carried out by the AMLC showed that Ampatuan clan members had engaged in financial transactions amounting to more than P1 billion from 2000 to 2009, which can be considered illegitimate because they were covered by allegedly spurious documents.
AMLC said the statement of assets and liabilities, and net worth (SALN) of Andal Ampatuan Sr., the clan’s patriarch, did not include his real properties, worth some P90.46 million.
Based on the AMLC report, the clan patriarch owns 27 houses in Shariff Aguak town in Maguindanao, Cotabato City and Davao City. He also has 91 vehicles with an estimated value of P111.23 million registered under his name and his wife Bai Laila.
The freeze order covers the principal accused in the Maguindanao massacre namely former Maguindanao Gov. Datu Andal Salibo Ampatuan Sr., wife Hadja Bai Laila Uy Ampatuan, former Mayor Datu Andal Uy Ampatuan Jr., ARMM Governor Zaldy Puti Uy Ampatuan, Zaldy Uy Ampatuan, and Sajid Islam Uy Ampatuan.
Also covered by the freeze order are the assets under Deal Gems and Jewelries Pawnshop, Maguindanao Electric Cooperative, Banco de Oro, Unibank, Bank of Philippine Islands, BPI Family Savings Bank, Development Bank of the Philippines, Coop Bank of Cotabato, East West Banking Corp. Philippine AXA Life Insurance Corporation, one Network RB Inc. and among others.
Other respondents covered by the freeze order are Osmena Medag Bandila, Delia Saqueton Sumail, Aladin Draper Sumail, Adham G. Patadon (Supply Officer V and Chief Administrative Officer V), Tahirodin Benzar A. Ampatuan, Anwar Uy Ampatuan, Ameerah Ampatuan Mamalapat, Rebecca Uy Ampatuan-Ampatuan, Rebecca Padsod Ampatuan (daughter of Datu Andal Ampatuan Sr.), Atty. Redemberto Reyes Villanueva, Datu Lucas Ampatuan-Ampatuan, Alibai Sakal Ampatuan, Datu Ulo Upam Ampatuan, Soraida Biruar Ampatuan (married to Datu Saudi Uy Ampatuan), Bai Shaydee Uy Ampatuan (married to Datu Nashution Macapandeg), Bai Sandra Ampatuan, Baril Sandra S. Ampatuan, Michelle Sakal Ampatuan, Michael Ampatuan Sulaik and Bar Monadia Ampatuan Abdullah.
