Pandi mayor’s rape trial suspended for 30 days

Pandi, Bulacan Mayor Enrico Roque —Photo from the Municipality of Pandi FB page

PANDI, BULACAN — A Caloocan City court has suspended for 30 days the trial of Pandi, Bulacan Mayor Enrico Roque, municipal councilor Jonjon Roxas and driver Roel Raymundo who are facing two counts of rape pending the results of a reinvestigation being conducted by the city prosecutor’s office.

Judge Rowena Alejandra of the Caloocan City Regional Trial Court Branch 121 handed down the order on Monday as she granted the motion of the accused to quash the arrest warrant against them, leading to their release.

READ: Pandi, Bulacan mayor, 2 others nabbed for rape

At the same time, she directed the prosecutor’s office to submit its reinvestigation findings within 30 days.

In her order, Alejandra sided with the accused who had claimed that their constitutional rights, including their right to due process, were violated.

Not a resident

They said they were not informed of the facts and circumstances of the charges against them, adding that they were not properly notified of the proceedings.

The accused also denied being residents of Caloocan City, which they said invalidated the serving of subpoenas against them.

Roque reiterated that he has no house in Caloocan, as he denied the alleged rape victim’s claim that she was abused in his supposed house on Langit Road, Bagong Silang, in the city.

In her order, the judge noted the lack of evidence proving that subpoenas were served to the accused at their known addresses.

No proof of transmittal

“It shows that accused-movants were not duly notified of the proceedings. The records [are] bereft of any evidence showing even an attempt to have the subpoena dated April 29, 2019, served to the known address of the accused-movants as supplied by the private complainant,” Alejandra said.

“This is evidenced by the absence of any return or transmittal. In the absence of such proof, this court finds the accused-movants were not given an opportunity to be heard.”

Prosecutors had filed two counts of rape against the three men who, according to the victim, raped her on April 6, 2019, when she was still a minor. She filed a complaint with the police four days later.

Roque said the accusation was politically motivated and meant to tarnish his reputation as he was running for a third term next year.

He also denied the complainant was a minor, calling her complaint “purely lies and a made-up story.”

Upon his release from the Northern Police District detention facility, Roque returned to Pandi, where he was met by supporters at the municipal hall grounds.