Accused businessman Tyrone Ong has complied with the Court of Tax Appeals’ (CTA) order by submitting his barangay certification as proof of his residence.
His coaccused has also complied with a similar order from the Tax Court.
The Tax Court required the two accused to submit a barangay certification after the Quezon City Police District and the Mandaluyong Police, in returning the alias warrant of arrest, both reported that Ong and Chua could not be located at their given address.
Under the law, authorities are required to report to the court why they failed to arrest the person subject of the warrant.
Authorities are still required to report even if both the accused have already appeared in court and have been arraigned last June 1. Both accused pleaded not guilty to tax evasion for failure to pay over P183-million in taxes.
Because their bail bond has been cancelled due to their failure to appear for their arraignment last April, both accused have been ordered to pay a bond three times their original bond, which is P900,000 each for their temporary liberty.
“Accused Ong and Arlene Chua were both ordered to submit barangay certifications showing that they are residents of the barangay indicated in the documents for the bond,” the Tax Court order stated.
However, the Tax Court deferred the preliminary conference and pre-trial conference of the case after the accused filed a motion to dismiss based on forum shopping and/or motion to dismiss based on prescription, which will be resolved first.
They were charged with tax evasion after the Commission on Audit ordered the BIR to check if their company Enviroaire declared P85.18 million and P140.53 million in its gross sales. The two amounts accounted for spare parts and maintenance of Light Armored Vehicles (LAV) purchased by the PNP.
After its investigation, the BIR claimed it found out Enviroaire “substantially underdeclared” its sales by 89.1094 percent.
Ong is facing a separate case for graft and malversation before the Sandiganbayan for the P385-million “ghost” repairs and maintenance of the V-150 armored vehicles of the Philippine National Police in 2007.
He is a business partner of Cedric Lee, who has been charged in several cases including tax evasion, graft and malversation and illegal detention.
Ong is also implicated in the ambush attempt against National Bureau of Investigation Director Reynaldo Esmeralda in 2012./rga