Daily Tribune reporter posts bail for drug case

MANILA, Philippines—The Daily Tribune reporter who has a pending warrant of arrest in connection with the drug possession charge filed against him last year has posted bail of P200,000 for his temporary freedom, according to a police official.

Senior Superintendent Danilo Maligalig, spokesperson of the police task force in charge of investigating the March 11 assault on Fernan Angeles, told the Inquirer on Thursday that the reporter’s wife, Gemma, went to court earlier this week to post bail to make sure that he would not be arrested pending the resolution of his case.

Angeles’ bail was approved by Acting Presiding Judge Genie Gapas-Agbada of the Pasig Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 154 on March 27.

In an order for the recall of the search warrant sent and received by the Eastern Police Department legal office, the court said that Angeles managed to post “the required bail bond to secure his provisional liberty.”

Earlier, the EPD said it would arrest the reporter as soon as he got out of Pasig City General Hospital where he remains confined for multiple gunshot wounds.  Acting Presiding Judge Paz Esperanza Cortes, also of the Pasig Regional Trial Court, had ordered the arrest of Angeles for possession of illegal drugs. The arrest warrant, however, was not served.

Angeles was shot seven times while his right arm was broken after several men ganged up on him and shot him near his house in Pasig City.

The police later arrested and charged Faisal Sancopan after he was tagged as one of the reporter’s attackers, a charge which the suspect denied.

According to Angeles, the attempt on his life happened a day after he informed then EPD director, Chief Supt. Francisco Manalo, about how some Pasig policemen made money from Sancopan who was arrested for drugs.

Earlier, Maligalig told the Inquirer that they had received information that another suspect in the attack on Angeles, a man identified only as Basare, was hiding somewhere in Manila.—With Jamie Marie Elona

Originally posted at 09:27 pm | Thursday, March 29,  2012