Former Daraga Mayor Carlwyn Baldo. (File photo from his Facebook account)
MANILA, Philippines —The Court of Appeals (CA) has nullified the order of Legazpi City Regional Trial Court to allow bail for former Mayor Carlwyn Baldo of Daraga in Albay, who is charged with the murder of Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Rodel Batocabe.
“We find that the trial court committed grave abuse of discretion by granting Baldo’s petition for bail without fully considering all of the prosecution’s evidence in the assailed orders. Therefore, the assailed orders are deemed null and void,” the CA’s 12th Division said in a ruling last March 1.
Baldo is charged with two counts of murder and six counts of attempted murder.
The CA ordered the regional trial court to resolve the petition for bail and take into consideration all the evidence presented during the bail hearing.
But the CA clarified said its order did not mean that the evidence against Baldo was strong or weak.
“In our view, the equitable course of action is to remand the incident to the trial court to make a new, immediate, and updated assessment of all evidence at hand and to issue the appropriate order containing a summary thereof with its resolution on Baldo’s entitlement to bail,” the appeals court said.
Baldo maintained that he had nothing to do with the death of Batocabe. He said he was only dragged into the matter by people who would want to taint his name.
Batocabe was distributing gifts to senior citizens in Daraga on Dec. 22, 2018, when he and his police escort, Senior Police Officer 2 Orlando Diaz, were gunned down. Under the new police rank, the escort’s rank is now a senior master sergeant.