It's your weekly compendium of foolishness and corruption in the Philippine government.
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| https://mb.com.ph/2025/08/15/6-policemen-charged-for-planting-evidence-nbi |
Six policemen have been criminally charged by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for planting evidence against a man they arrested in Nueva Vizcaya in May 2024.
In a statement, the NBI identified those charged as PMaj. Santy C. Ventura, PMsg. Odra Noel Efalla, PCpl. Jeff Lloyd N. Apangchan, PCpl. Randy T. Agdeppa, Pat. John Michael C. Tanguilan, and Frederick Mariano.
Aside from planting of evidence, they were also charged before the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office of Nueva Vizcaya with abuse of authority and obstruction of justice under the Revised Penal Code, it said.
The NBI said the charges arose from the acquittal of Freddie Mallari, the man the six policemen arrested.
It said the evidence gathered by its Bayombong District Office (NBI-BAYDO) and the findings of the regional trial court (RTC) showed that “the firearms seized during the service of a search warrant on May 25, 2024, were fabricated.”
It also said the decision handed down by the trial court “not only cleared Mallari of all charges but also condemned the officers’ conduct as a clear violation of his constitutional rights.”
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2096816/ombudsman-suspends-nueva-ecija-gov-for-one-year-without-pay |
The Office of the Ombudsman has ordered a one-year suspension without pay for Nueva Ecija Gov. Aurelio Umali.
The suspension stems from the alleged illegal issuance of 205 quarrying permits in the province without the required Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC) from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
In a 29-page decision, the Ombudsman said it found “substantial evidence” indicating that Umali is “guilty of conduct prejudicial to the best interest of service and simple misconduct.” This led to his suspension for one year under Section 25(2) of Republic Act (RA) 6770, or the Ombudsman Act of 1989, and Section 10(b), Rule III of Administrative Order No. 7, as amended, of the Rules of Procedure of the Office of the Ombudsman.
Meanwhile, the anti-graft body dismissed complaints against his wife, former Nueva Ecija Gov. Czarina Umali; former Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer (PENRO) Wilfredo Pangilinan; and former regional directors Danilo Uykieng, Lope Cariño Jr., Samuel Paragas, and Alilo Ensomo Jr. of the DENR Region 3 – Mines Geosciences Bureau (MGB).
The consolidated decision arose from separate complaints filed against Umali, his wife, and the former DENR officials.
In March 2024, Roberto Duldulao filed complaints of grave misconduct, gross neglect of duty, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service against Umali, his wife, and Pangilinan.
In connection with this complaint, the Ombudsman cited findings from the House committee on good government and public accountability on November 27, 2018.The committee revealed that the Umalis, during their respective terms as Nueva Ecija governor, “granted around 205 commercial sand and gravel permits (CSGPs) to unqualified permittees without an ECC from the DENR–Environmental Management Bureau.”
The CSGPs issued from January 2014 to June 2016 were approved by the male Umali, while his wife approved quarry permits from July 2016 to September 2018. Instead of requiring an ECC, the two allegedly only asked unqualified permittees to obtain a local environmental clearance certificate (LECC).
According to the anti-graft body, granting CSGPs without the proper requirements violates RA 7942, or the Philippine Mining Act of 1995, its implementing rules and regulations (IRRs), and Presidential Decree 1856.
The Ombudsman said Pangilinan conspired with the Umalis by recommending the approval of quarry permits based on submitted LECCs.
Findings from the Field Investigation Office of the Ombudsman revealed that MGB Region 3 Directors Uykieng, Cariño, Paragas, and Ensomo “failed to perform their functions of constituting the Provincial Mining Regulatory Board to review and evaluate the quarry permits.
“They did nothing to stop the illegal issuance of permits by the provincial government of Nueva Ecija, led by spouses Umali and Pangilinan, without complying with the provisions of RA 7942 and its revised IRRs,” the decision reads./mcm
The Office of the Ombudsman has ordered a one-year suspension without pay for Nueva Ecija Gov. Aurelio Umali.
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| https://mb.com.ph/2025/08/16/qc-cops-arrest-city-hall-employee-for-extortion-attempt |
The Quezon City Police District (QCPD) arrested a city hall employee for allegedly extorting P847,982 from a business owner in exchange for renewing a permit.Police identified the suspect only as Maria, 41, a resident of Barangay Batasan Hills.The suspect was caught in an entrapment operation by the QCPD Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit (CIDU) on Wednesday, August 13, at a fast-food chain along Matalino Street in Barangay Central.Authorities said the incident began on Monday, August 11, when the victim received a text message from the suspect, who threatened to shut down her business over an expired Certificate of Exemption to Operate.The suspect allegedly demanded P847,982 to “renew” the business permit.The victim immediately sought police help, prompting operatives to stage the entrapment.Authorities recovered a cellphone, brown envelope, P849,000 worth of fake money.Police said the suspect will be charged with robbery-extortion and attempted estafa.QCPD Chief Col. Randy Glenn Silvio urged residents to immediately report similar incidents.“We thank the victim for reporting the case right away, which allowed us to stop this illegal activity. Extortion carries a heavy penalty, and we encourage the public to report any threats or suspicious acts to the nearest police station or through the emergency hotlines 911 and 122,” Silvio said.
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| https://mb.com.ph/2025/08/17/ca-affirms-conviction-of-4-makati-city-policemen-for-kidnapping |
The Court of Appeals (CA) has stood pat on its decision that affirmed the conviction by the trial court of four Makati City policemen for kidnapping filed against them in 2017.In a resolution written by Associate Justice Eleuterio L. Bathan, the CA denied the motion for reconsideration filed by Police Officer 2 Harley Garcera, PO2 Clarence Maynes, PO1 Tim Santos, and PO1 Jeffrey Cañete.The CA said that the convicted police officers failed to raise new arguments that would warrant the reversal of its decision issued last February 14.It ruled: “The arguments presented in the motion were already considered, discussed, and passed upon in the assailed decision. No new matters were raised by the accused-appellants that would warrant modifying, much less reversing, our earlier findings.”Affirmed by the CA was the decision handed down by the Pasay City regional trial court (RTC) which sentenced them to reclusion perpetua, a jail term ranging from 20 to 40 years.Also affirmed was the payment of the P100,000 ransom that the policemen extorted from their victim on top of the P300,000 in civil indemnity and damages.The case stemmed from the kidnapping charges filed on June 22, 2017 by a motorcycle shop owner who accused the four policemen of illegally arresting him and forcibly taking him with them.The shop owner testified that while they were inside a vehicle, the policemen demanded P400,000 for his release. To come up with the demanded amount, the shop owner said he would sell his belongings or pawn his vehicle.The complainant was able to raise only P100,000 and promised the policemen he would give the balance the following day.He said his telephone number was taken by the policemen who threatened him that if he would not come up with the amount, they would kill his family members.The four policemen were arrested during an entrapment operation conducted by the Philippine National Police-Counter Intelligence Task Force (CITF) where the shop owner reported the incident.In affirming its February 14 decision, the CA said: “The prosecution was able to establish beyond reasonable doubt the conspiracy between the appellants. The RPC (Revised Penal Code) provides that a conspiracy exists when two or more persons come to an agreement concerning the commission of a felony and decide to commit it.”
The Ombudsman told former Governor Gwendolyn Garcia to pay up to approximately P1.2 million in fines after they found her guilty of administrative charges.
The state’s anti-graft body found Garcia guilty for conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service and simple misconduct over the desilting project her administration undertook in Mananga River.
The punishment was supposed to be a 1-year suspension without pay but considering Garcia is no longer a public official, the Ombudsman ordered to pay the fine equivalent to six months of her basic salary as governor.
Provincial governors earn between P203,200 and P226,000 in a month, based on the current compensation scheme from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).
The decision stems from a case filed by Moises Deiparine which also became the basis for Garcia’s six-month suspension last April — just few weeks shy of the May 12 polls.
Deiparine accused the former governor of grave abuse of authority, gross misconduct, serious dishonesty, gross negligence, conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, and violation of Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees (Republic Act No. 6713).
His complaint revolves around the special permit Garcia issued to Shalom Construction Inc. in May 2024 to desilt the upstream portions of the Mananga River as part of the province’s measures to address drought and shortage of water that year.
However, Deiparine reported that her administration failed to secure the mandatory clearances from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), such as the environmental compliance certificate.
In a 37-page ruling, the Ombudsman stated that Garcia did not commit grave abuse of authority, gross misconduct, serious dishonesty, and gross negligence, leading to their dismissal.
While they pointed out that Garcia’s intentions were well-meant, she still needs to uphold and comply with prevailing environmental laws.
“Following a comprehensive evaluation of the evidence at hand, it can be reasonably inferred that the respondent’s intentions in desilting the Mananga River were well-meaning. She had sought to address the urgent water crisis brought about by the El Niño phenomenon,” portions of the document read.
“However, our environmental laws, particularly those relating to the EIS (Environmental Impact Statement) and the requirement to obtain an ECC (Environmental Compliance Certificate), are in place to ensure that solutions to present problems do not create greater environmental harm in the future,” it added.
Reporters have already reached out to Garcia for her comments as of this posting.
But it can be recalled that the former governor has defended her decision to issue the special permit in question was driven solely by the urgent need to address the critical water shortage that had severely affected the entire franchise area of the Metropolitan Cebu Water District, which includes Cebu City and seven other local governments.
She said all decisions were undertaken in close collaboration with the affected local governments as well as with the government agencies tasked to regulate environmental matters, namely the DENR, the Environmental Management Bureau and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau.
The Ombudsman told former Governor Gwendolyn Garcia to pay up to approximately P1.2 million in fines after they found her guilty of administrative charges.
Six personnel from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap) who tested positive for illegal drugs have been dismissed from service, the agency announced on Monday.
In a statement, Caap reported that out of 1,703 employees tested, one tested positive at General Santos International Airport, three at Butuan Airport, one at Ozamiz Airport, and one at Bacolod-Silay Airport.
Caap provided no further details about the six personnel.
According to the agency, the drug testing is part of Caap’s efforts to maintain a drug-free workplace, in line with the Philippine Civil Aviation Regulation on Psychoactive Testing and Reporting and the Civil Service Commission’s requirement for mandatory drug testing of both new and existing government employees.
Caap also assured travelers that flights within Philippine airspace are manned by “a capable, drug-free workforce committed to the highest standards of aviation safety.”
“The safety and efficiency of aviation operations greatly depend on the physical and mental well-being of all aviation personnel,” said Dr. Rolly Bayaban, chief flight surgeon of Caap’s Office of the Flight Surgeon and Aviation Medicine.
Six personnel from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (Caap) who tested positive for illegal drugs have been dismissed from service.
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| https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2097290/3-cops-face-raps-for-filing-unrelated-charges-after-altar-servers-death |
Three police officers faced complaints before the National Police Commission (Napolcom) for allegedly filing unrelated charges against a father whose son died after contracting leptospirosis while searching for him.
Jayson dela Rosa, the father of 20-year-old altar server Dion Angelo dela Rosa, also known as Gelo, was accompanied by his lawyer, Arnold Valenzuela, and Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David during the filing of complaints.
The officers were not named during a press conference on Monday.
According to reports, Gelo, a third-year human resource services student at Malabon City College, contracted leptospirosis after wading through waist-deep floodwaters to search for his father, who went missing on July 22.
His father was initially arrested at a convenience store for alleged theft but was charged three days later, on July 25, with violating Presidential Decree (PD) No. 1602, the law on illegal gambling.
According to his lawyer, Arnold Valenzuela, the convenience store chose not to press charges against Jayson. Nevertheless, he was reportedly held at Caloocan Substation 2 for several days before authorities charged him with a lesser offense.
“He was still arrested by the police and was told to be grateful because 7-Eleven would no longer pursue the case against him, but he was still taken to the station and detained at Substation 2,” Valenzuela said in Filipino after filing the complaints.“And when he was at Substation 2, he was told that since he was lucky 7-Eleven did not press charges for the alleged theft, they would instead charge him with a lesser offense (PD 1602) as a sort of ‘favor,’ even though it wasn’t true,” he added.
“Supposedly, there’s no complaint; the police should let him go because there is no complaint. But for reasons only known to the police officers, they opted to invent a case, to make up a case that is not true,” Valenzuela added.
In addition to the administrative complaints, Jayson’s camp decided to file criminal complaints against the police officers.
Napolcom Vice Chairperson and Executive Officer Rafael Calinisan said that possible grave misconduct charges could be filed against the officers involved, based on Jayson’s testimony and CCTV footage from the convenience store.
He also revealed that the commission is investigating the alleged involvement of two to three additional police officers who may have assisted in filing the illegal gambling complaint against Jayson.
Three police officers faced complaints before the National Police Commission for allegedly filing unrelated charges against a father whose son died after contracting leptospirosis while searching for him.
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| https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2025/08/19/2466507/ex-trc-exec-gets-27-years-graft |
The Sandiganbayan has sentenced businessman Dennis Cunanan, a former deputy director-general of the defunct state firm Technology Resource Center (TRC), to up to 27 years in prison for involvement in the misuse of P22.5 million in Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) or pork barrel of former senator Gregorio Honasan in 2007 and 2008.
In a 97-page decision promulgated on Aug. 15, the anti-graft court’s Third Division found Cunanan guilty of one count each of violation of Section 3 (e) of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and malversation of public funds under Article 217 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC).
Convicted with Cunanan for the same offenses were private respondents Petronila Balmaceda and Leoncio Balisi of the non-government organization Pangkabuhayan Foundation Inc. (PFI).
For the graft offense, Cunanan, Balmaceda and Balisi were sentenced to six years and one month up to 10 years of imprisonment. The court also ordered the perpetual disqualification of Cunanan from holding public office and the forfeiture of all his retirement and gratuity benefits.
For the malversation offense, Cunanan, Balmaceda and Balisi were sentenced to 12 years to up to 17 years and four months imprisonment. They were also ordered to jointly pay a fine of P20 million. The court said this was on top of another P20 million that they must pay as civil liability.
Meanwhile, former TRC group manager Maria Rosalinda Lacsamana was found guilty, together with Balmaceda and Balisi, of separate set of violation of Section 3 (e) of RA 3019 and malversation of public funds under Article 217 of the RPC.
For the graft offense, they were sentenced to six years and one month to up to 10 years imprisonment, with the accessory penalty of perpetual disqualification from holding public office.
For malversation, Lacsamana, Balmaceda and Balisi were sentenced to 10 years to up to 14 years and eight months of imprisonment. They were also ordered to jointly pay P2.5 million as civil liability.
The cases, meanwhile, against former TRC director general Antonio Ortiz were ordered temporarily archived as he remains at large, without prejudice to the case’s revival upon his arrest or voluntary surrender.
Filed by the Office of the Ombudsman in 2019, the cases stemmed from the TRC’s release in two instances of the amount of P20 million and P2.5 million to PFI, drawn from the PDAF of then senator Honasan in 2007 and 2008, respectively.
The ombudsman said the funds were released to PFI for supposed implementation of Honasan’s livelihood and financial projects for the widows and orphans of deceased soldiers and police officers in the provinces of Isabela and Cagayan.
The ombudsman said its investigation revealed that the projects were never implemented, and that the PFI submitted spurious documents such as a list of beneficiaries and project implementation reports to support its supposed liquidation of the funds.
Honasan, however, was not included in the cases as the ombudsman earlier ruled that there was no probable cause to establish his participation in the anomalies.
In convicting Cunanan, Lacsamana and the two officials of PFI, the Third Division said the prosecution was able to sufficiently establish their conspiracy to defraud the government.
The court said sufficient testimonial and documentary evidence were also presented showing that the projects were never implemented.
“Additionally, of note is the observation of the COA (Commission on Audit) that the attendance sheets of the purported participants from the various cities and municipalities of the provinces of Isabela and Cagayan do not show that they actually received any financial assistance or even indicate their specific addresses,” the Third Division said.
“Likewise, the physical existence of PFI is questionable. As per the SAO (Special Audit Observation) Audit Report No. 2012-03 dated Aug. 14, 2013, the two addresses declared by PFI is a dilapidated apartment previously occupied by its NGO president and a residential unit whose occupant was unaware of the existence of the PFI,” it added. “Without any evidence in refutation, these liquidation reports were indeed falsified.”
Cunanan’s name recently reappeared in the headlines as co-accused of dismissed mayor Alice Guo of Bamban, Tarlac in charges of qualified human trafficking filed by the Department of Justice.
The Sandiganbayan has sentenced businessman Dennis Cunanan, a former deputy director-general of the defunct state firm Technology Resource Center, to up to 27 years in prison for involvement in the misuse of P22.5 million in Priority Development Assistance Fund or pork barrel of former senator Gregorio Honasan in 2007 and 2008.
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| https://www.philstar.com/nation/2025/08/18/2466203/marikina-engineer-2-others-suspended |
Marikina engineer Kennedy Sueno and two other city officials have been suspended for six months for dealing with fixers in the issuance of building permits.
In a 20-page resolution, the Office of the Ombudsman found Sueno, engineer Mark de Joya and administrative aide Abigail Joy Santiago guilty of conduct unbecoming of a public officer.
Bribery charges were filed in May last year by Brian and Agnes Torre following their application for building and occupancy permits in August 2021.
The couple complained about “numerous obstacles” during the application process. They ended up paying P430,000 to personnel of the city engineering office.
In June 2024, Sueno, De Joya, Santiago and four others were suspended for six months “to preserve the documents and other possible evidence, which may be in their custody.”
The ombudsman said the suspects conducted informal meetings at the Marikina City engineering department and interacted with fixers.
Charges of grave misconduct and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service were dismissed for lack of evidence.
Meanwhile, the charges filed against enforcement section chief Romeo Gutierrez Jr., building inspector Marlito Poquiz, assistant city engineer and permits division chief Josephine Gutierrez Evangelista, electrical inspector Alex Copreros as well as electrician foreman Manuel Santos were dismissed for lack of sufficient basis.
Marikina engineer Kennedy Sueno and two other city officials have been suspended for six months for dealing with fixers in the issuance of building permits.
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| https://mb.com.ph/2025/08/19/ex-soldier-yields-p27-m-shabu |
Authorities seized four kilos of suspected shabu valued at P27 million from an ex-soldier during a buy-bust operation here on Tuesday, Aug. 19.The suspect was identified as Sahdan Badiri Ibrahim, 52, from Labangan, Zamboanga del Sur and a high-value drug suspect.Authorities apprehended the suspect after he sold shabu to a poseur-buyer in Barangay Canelar at around 9 a.m.Recovered from him were four one-kilo plastic packs of shabu, three of which had a QR code, worth P27 million.Ibrahim faces charges for violating Republic Act No. 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
A former soldier has been busted for drugs.
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