Court junks Mikee Romero’s appeal vs arrest order

A Manila Regional Trial Court (RTC) has junked the appeal of billionaire legislator Michael “Mikee” Romero to nullify the warrant for his arrest for a case of qualified theft, a nonbailable offense.

Romero, of the 1-Pacman party-list group, had sought to quash the warrant issued allegedly for embezzlement of P3.4 million from a firm owned by his estranged father, businessman Reghis Romero II.

In a two-page order, Judge Cicero Jurado Jr. of Manila RTC Branch 11 upheld the arrest warrant against the younger Romero and two coaccused on Jan. 6.

The case against the younger Romero, Edwin Jeremillo and Felicia Aquino, were filed by Harbour Centre Port Terminal Inc. (HCPTI), the company which operates the Manila North Harbor port and owned by the elder Romero.

Jerome Canlas, HCPTI corporate secretary, had sued the lawmaker for allegedly issuing checks to fictitious payees in April 2007.

Judge Jurado said that while prosecutors had  control in criminal cases, courts had the “exclusive jurisdiction and competence” to determine the need to order the arrest of an accused.