Businessman Peter Lim during a short press conference at his office in Hilton Motors in Mandaue City. Although he appears to be calm, he admits he fears for his life after being linked to the drug trade. INQUIRER file photo / ADOR VINCENT MAYOL
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has denied the appeal of alleged drug lord Peter Lim to stop the new preliminary probe into the drug cases filed against him.
In a resolution issued on Friday, DOJ Secretary Menardo Guevarra denied Lim’s appeal to reinstate his exoneration from the charges filed against him, self-confessed drug trafficker Kerwin Espinosa, convicted drug lord Peter Co and several others.
“Movant (Lim) has failed to show any violation of his due process rights, much less his right to a speedy disposition of his case,” Guevarra said in his resolution.
“On the other hand, setting aside the challenged order will deny complainant its right to adduce all available evidence within its reach and may result in a serious miscarriage of justice, the very evil sought to be prevented by the legislature when it crafted Section 4 of RA No. 10071 (Prosecution Service Act of 2010),” he added.
READ: Lawyers of Peter Lim deplore new drug probe
Lim, in his motion for reconsideration, wanted to stop the new drug probe ordered by former Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre on March 19.
In his order, Aguirre set aside the dismissal of the complaints against Lim and other respondents and remanded the cases to a new panel of prosecutors for another preliminary investigation.
Aguirre pointed out that issuing the order was within his powers provided under the Prosecution Service Act of 2010 in relation to DOJ Department Circular No. 004 dated January 4, 2017, on the automatic review of criminal cases.
Lim’s camp, in a motion for reconsideration, argued that the former DOJ chief ordered the new investigation without citing any ground.
“The assailed Order neither contained the ground for vacating the dismissal of the complaint against Mr. Lim, nor it discussed the evidentiary basis in the records and disclosed to the parties during the preliminary investigation, to support such Order,” read Lim’s motion.
But Guevarra stressed that Aguirre’s order itself “discloses its legal basis, the ground for its issuance, and its intended objective, none of which is legally infirm of objectionable.”
“This claim is belied by the order itself, which categorically states that the remand of the case to a new panel of prosecutors is intended to allow complainant and respondents to submit additional evidence in support of their respective positions,” Guevarra said in his resolution.
“Wherefore, premises considered, respondent-movant Peter Go Lim’s motion for reconsideration dated 06 April 2018 is hereby denied for lack of merit,” the DOJ chief said. /jpv