MANILA -- The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) filed a petition before the Court of Appeals seeking to reverse its ruling and order the re-arrest former Palawan governor Joel Reyes in connection with murder charges over the killing of environmentalist and broadcaster Gerry Ortega.
In a 53-page motion for reconsideration, Solicitor General Jose Calida asked the CA’s Former Special Eleventh Division, Special Division of Five, to reconsider and reverse its Jan. 4 decision which ordered Reyes’ release from prison on the grounds that there was no basis for Puerto Princesa Regional Trial Court (PPRTC) to indict him for Ortega’s death.
According to Calida, the decision imposed its own standard of probable cause different from that required by law and one not warranted by the circumstances.
“The CA erred when it considered all evidentiary matters and resorted to calibrations of the rules of evidence in determining the existence of probable cause.”
“In finding no probable cause to arrest Reyes, the CA unfortunately conducted a fragmented analysis of the evidence before it, isolating each piece of evidence and concluding that it alone does not prove probable cause,” Calida said.
The top government counsel mentioned that Reyes and his brother, former Coron Mayor Mario Reyes Jr., left the country after a warrant of arrest was issued against them. They were arrested in Thailand and returned to the Philippines in September 2015.
“Further, Reyes’ flight from the country is a strong indication of his guilt that should have been taken into consideration by the CA,” he noted.
He also prayed that the information on the said criminal case that is pending before PPRTC Branch 52 be reinstated and for the proceedings against Reyes continue.
Calida also said that, "No doubt, the CA Decision has eroded the faith and trust the People of the Philippines reposed in it to render a decision in this Petition that is just and fair."
According to the CA’s Former 11th Division, Special Division of Five, there was no evidence presented to try Reyes for Ortega’s killing.
“Our hands are tied by our bounded duty to administer justice and abide by the law. No evidence, no conviction. So be it,” the appellate court said in its 24-page decision penned by Associate Justice Normandie Pizarro.
“This Court could only hope that he would take advantage and give full-faith and meaning to this second lease on life given him. He is definitely saved from the 20-year or so imprisonment metable to the offense charged,” read the decision dated last January 4.
“Call it a second chance afforded him by God, or a lucky three-point play for him to use a common street lingo or a miracle in his favor, the petitioner (Reyes) must by all means be exonerated from the charge,” it said.
The special division of five justices of the CA division voted 3-2 to acquit Reyes.
The two magistrates who dissented -- Associate Justices Maria Filemona Singh and Marie Christine Azcarraga-Jacob -- held that the determination of probable cause in issuing the arrest rests on the trial judge handling the case.
Ortega, who had been hailed as an environmental hero, was gunned down on Jan. 24, 2011 in Puerto Princesa City after having just finished his radio program “Ramatak”.
The gunman, Marlon Recamata, was arrested and pleaded guilty to murder charges in February 2011.
Recamata tagged the Reyes brothers as the masterminds behind the killing of Ortega, who had criticized the former governor for the supposed destruction of the environment in the province. (PNA)
