Arrests Suspended for now

For now, the Martinez political clan Bogo City can heave a sigh of relief.
Arrest warrants issued by the Sandiganbayan were suspended in the nick of time in relation to the alleged malversation of P11.5 million in donated government funds to the Girl Scouts of the Philippines ten years ago.
The warrants were served yesterday morning in Martinez’s residences in Cebu City and Bogo City but had no effect.
Bogo City Mayor Celestino Martinez Jr. , in a press conference, showed a fax copy of the Sandiganbayan’s July 31 resolution granting their request to defer implementation of the arrest warrants while the court resolves a motion to dismiss.
His wife Clavel, son Celestino “Tining” and daughter Cielo were not around when agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) – Central Visayas came looking for them at home.
Junie said the family was expecting the attempt to serve warrants, and that their lawyers are pursuing a motion to dismiss the charges.
“We’re after the total dismissal of the charges. We feel there has been no damage committed in this case,” he said in a press conference in Cebu City.
“We believe that they are innocent. I won’t elaborate on the merits of the cases since they are already in court. I don’t want to jeopardize the proceedings,” he said.
The criminal trial has yet to get underway for the 2003 case involving alleged malversation of an P11.5 million donation to the GSP from pork barrel funds of Clavel, who was then 4th district representative and president of the GSP Cebu council.
Graft investigators said the donation was diverted to Clavel’s personal bank account and later withdrawn by her daughter, Cielo, the GSP Cebu council treasurer.
The three Martinezes and four other individuals were charged before the Sandiganbayan in 2011 .
The other accused are former Bogo municipal treasurer and now councilor Rhett Minguez, municipal accountant Cresencio Verdida, bookkeeper Rhodariza Kilantang and GSP Cebu Council cashier Julieta Quino.
The case is closely being watched as a test of the “matuwid na daan” policy of the Aquino administration as Junie Martinez is one of his original Liberal Party supporters in Cebu.
The arrest order was dated March 18. “Implementation… is hereby suspended until further order by this court,” said Justices Teresita Diaz-Baldos, Napoleon Inoturan, and Oscar Herrera Jr. of the Sandiganbayan’s second division in their order.
A fax copy was received by Bogo City Mayor Martinez about 3 p.m. yesterday.
NBI SERVICE
Earlier in the morning, NBI 7 agents went to the Martinez’s residences in barangay Talamban, Cebu City and in Bogo City to serve the arrest warrants.
Clavel, Tining, Cielo and Bogo City Councilor Rhett Minguez were not around when the NBI-7 led by supervising agent Rennan Augustus Oliva went to their respective addresses.
The NBI received the arrest warrant on July 30. Oliva, who said the agency was not aware of the suspension order until later, said the NBI had 10 days to serve the arrest order. Since the subjects were not around, they would have returned the orders to the Sandiganbayan to issue an alias warrant.
Oliva said a Hold Departure Order was already issued against all seven accused last January 4, stopping them from leaving the country without permission of the anti-graft court.
No arraignment has been held yet. This means the Sandiganbayan has not yet acquired jurisdiction over the seven accused.
All seven were charged by the Office of the Ombudsman with malversation of public funds and violation of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act before the Sandiganbayan.
They were tagged as part of a conspiracy that resulted in the depositing of a P10 million allocation for the Girl Scouts of Philippines’ anti-drug campaign in the personal account of Clavel Martinez.
Bail was recommended at P40,000 each.
Clavel said the allegation of conspiracy was baseless, and that no irregularity took place. She asked the Sandiganbayan to dismiss the graft charges.
“We knew that arrest warrants were issued by the Sandiganbayan. We just waited for the implementation. (But) we still feel -that there is justice,” Junie said in a press conference at Rajah Park Hotel in Cebu City yesterday afternoon.
He said he was at home in Silver Hills Subdivision in Talamban, Cebu City when the NBI-7 served the arrest warrants about 8 a.m.
Junie said he was expecting his son Tining to arrive in Cebu last night from Masbate province.
“After the elections, the family decided that Tining shall take over the management of our properties and a rest house in Masbate,” he explained.
He said his wife Clavel was in Manila for updates of the case.
Only house workers received the arrest warrants served in Martinez’s residence yesterday in Talamban and then in Bogo City. The NBI-7 also went to the house of Minguez in barangay Cogon, Bogo City.
Junie Martinez accused his political opponent 4th district Rep. Benhur Salimbangon of being behind efforts to pin down his family.
“Politics plays a big role in this case. There is no other party interested here other than Salimbangon but I’m sure he will deny it,” he said.
Salimbangon of the National Unity Party defeated Junie’s son Tining in the congressional race last May 2013.
Ombudsman investigators said that from September 2003 to October 2003, the seven accused conspired to misuse P10 million so that it would go to the personal use and benefit of Clavel.
The amount came from Clavel’s congressional pork barrel and was intended as a donation to the GSP chapter in Cebu.
Investigators found out that the fund was deposited to Clavel’s personal account with the Bank of the Philippine Islands. In September 2003, P11.5 million of Clavel’s Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) was released through a check with the GSP as payee.
Quino, the GSP council cashier later applied for a manager’s check in the same amount, with the payee listed as GSP or Ma. Cielo Martinez.
The P11.5 million was deposited in the GSP’s acount in the Bank of the Philippine Islands but was later withdrawn by the congresswoman’s daughter Ma. Cielo that same month and deposited to Clavel’s BPI personal account.
The Ombudsman said that P1.5 million of the amount was erroneously released as part of Clavel’s pork barrel when it was actually for the Bayan Muna party-list.
The GSP eventually returned the P1.5 million to the Bogo City government which was still a municipality.
Bogo City remitted the P1.5 million to the proper government office. In 2005, the accused returned P10 million to the government coffers but the Ombudsman said the decision to return the money to the government does not discount the fact that public money was embezzled and appropriated for personal use.