The Office of the Ombudsman (File photo by NINO JESUS ORBETA / Philippine Daily Inquirer)
A graft investigation officer and a labor arbiter who were arrested in an entrapment operation were charged with direct bribery and ethical breach for allegedly extorting money from local officials in Pangasinan.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Office of the Ombudsman said it has filed criminal charges against Associate Graft Investigation Officer III Leonardo Nicolas, Jr. and his cousin, Labor Arbiter Isagani Laurence Nicolas of the National Labor Relations Commission-Dagupan City Branch, for direct bribery as well as violation of Section 7(d) of the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees or Republic Act 6713.
The Ombudsman said the direct bribery charges were filed before the Sandiganbayan on Monday, while separate charges for violations of Republic Act 6713 were filed before the Municipal Trial Court of Lingayen, Pangasinan.
The charges against the two officers were filed following their arrest in an entrapment operation on July 21, wherein the two were caught receiving marked money at a resort in Lingayen, Pangasinan.
READ: Ombudsman investigator nabbed for extortion try
Nicolas Jr. has been under the Ombudsman’s investigation that culminated in the entrapment operation for allegedly extorting P3 million from Pangasinan local officials in exchange of dropping the complaints under fact-finding investigation.
The Ombudsman was tipped that Nicolas Jr. reached out to Pangasinan Legal Officer Geraldine Baniqued requesting a meeting about an Ombudsman investigation on Bugallon Mayor Jumen Anthony Espino.
During the meeting last May, Nicolas Jr. asked for P150,000 to P250,000 per allegation, or a total of P1.35 million covering the nine complaints against Espino.
Nicolas Jr. also sent text messages to Baniqued demanding the payment of money for him to drop the charges, the Ombudsman said.
Meanwhile, labor arbiter Nicolas sent a text message to the Pangasinan Provincial Accountant that he knew a person who could fix their cases in the Ombudsman.
READ: Ombudsman suspends graft prober, labor arbiter caught in sting
On July 14, the two met with local officials of Pangasinan at Lenox Hotel in Dagupan City and presented fake documents on three bogus Ombudsman cases, with Nicolas Jr. telling the officials he could facilitate the dismissal of these cases in exchange for P1 million per case.
During the entrapment operation on July 21, Nicolas Jr. was caught with a bogus Field Investigation Office evaluation report, which was supposed to be presented in exchange for P3 million.
“Respondents worked in tandem—respondent Leonardo communicating with Atty. Baniqued, and respondent Isagani contacting complainant and later on introducing to him respondent Leonardo as an Ombudsman lawyer—all with the end goal of demanding money from the Espino family to facilitate the dismissal of fictitious cases against Complainant Espino and Mayor Espino,” the Ombudsman said in the statement.
“That the respondents were a team in their attempt at extortion is further proven by their presence during the pre-arranged meeting when the P3 million was supposed to change hands,” the Ombudsman added.
According to the Revised Penal Code, direct bribery is committed by a public officer who receives, directly or through another, some gift or present, offer or promise in consideration of the commission of some crime, or any act not constituting a crime, or to refrain from doing an official act relating to the exercise of functions as a public officer.
Meanwhile, the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees or Republic Act 6713 prohibits all public officials and employees from soliciting or accepting, directly or indirect any gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, loan or anything of monetary value in connection with any operation being regulated by his office. JPV