THE Sandiganbayan has affirmed 28 counts of graft charges filed by the Office of the Ombudsman against former PNP-Firearms and Explosives Office chief Raul Petrasanta, Supt. Nelson Bautista, and Chief Insp. Ricardo Zapata Jr.
In a five-page resolution dated March 15, 2017, the anti-graft court’s Sixth Division denied the defendants’ joint Omnibus Motion and Supplemental Omnibus Motion seeking dismissal of all charges.
The defendants claimed they did not commit a criminal offense under Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
The Sandiganbayan found the defendants’ motion “devoid of merit.”
“While the movants make a sweeping assertion that the facts charged do not constitute an offense, they did not specify any particular insufficiency in the allegations contained in the Information. The contentions and claims cited by movants are actually defenses being invoked by them which are evidentiary in character,” the court said.
The cases, filed in 2015, alleged a conspiracy among Petrasanta, 11 other PNP officers, and private individuals in the issuance of firearms licenses.
The Ombudsman declared as anomalous the said government transaction.
Of the 28 charges, 14 constituted violation of Section 3 (e) of RA 3019 on undue injury caused to the government or giving unwarranted benefits or preference to a party.
The other 14 cases were violations of Section 3 (j) of RA 3019 which defines the unlawful act of knowingly approving or granting any license, permit, privilege or benefit in favor of any person not qualified for or not legally entitled to such license or permit.
Prosecutors accused Petrasanta and his co-defendants of having unduly favored Caraga Isla Security Agency, Claver Mineral Development Corp., and JTC Mineral Mining Corp. for approving their applications for firearms licenses despite incomplete or falsified documents and supporting papers.
Also included were Civil Security Group Director Gil Meneses, Firearms and Explosives Office Director Napoleon Estilles, Chief Supt. Tomas Rentoy III, Chief Supt. Regino Catiis, Senior Supt. Eduardo Acierto, Sr. Supt. Allan Parreño Jr., Chief Insp. Ricky Sumalde, SPO1 Eric Tan, SPO1 Randy De Sesto, non-uniformed PNP personnel Nora Pirote and Sol Barga, and private defendant Isidro Lozada of Caraga Security.
Petrasanta, Bautista, and Zapata claimed the facts alleged in the information failed to establish the elements of a criminal offense, hence the cases should be dismissed.
Petrasanta denied any participation in the facilitation, processing and approval of firearms permits for 20 AK-47 rifles applied for by CMDC.
At the same time, the three questioned their inclusion in four other charges involving the alleged illegal approval of an “Authority to Purchase Firearms” in favor of Isla, saying the issuance of the said document falls under the Supervising Office for Security and Investigation Agency and not under the PNP-FEO.
They claimed the FEO could not proceed without the initial authority coming from Sosia.
The defendants also challenged the standard operating procedures for the processing of applications for firearms licenses as quoted in the Ombudsman’s resolution of April 28, 2015, saying it was “fabricated and simulated.”
Associate Justice Oscar C. Herrera Jr. penned the resolution. Associate Justices Rodolfo Ponferrada and Michael Frederick L. Musngi concurred.