The Sandiganbayan has ordered the imprisonment of a former mayor in Davao del Sur who allowed firecrackers to be sold in the public market in his town.
Former Mayor Edwin Granada Reyes of Bansalan, Davao del Sur was sentenced to six to 10 years imprisonment by the anti-graft court’s Seventh Division.
Reyes was also barred from holding public office for graft. He was found “guilty beyond reasonable doubt” for violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
Reyes’ co-accused, former Bansalan chief of police Solomon de Castilla and then-Business Permits and Licensing officer Rita Domingo, were also meted the same sentence.
In its decision, the Sandiganbayan said prosecutors proved that Reyes issued a Mayor’s Permit for the sale of firecrackers in the Bansalan Public Market, which was razed by fire in December 2009 when a cigaret butt ignited the stored fireworks in Building 2 of the market.
The incident led the filing of a graft charge against Reyes and his co-accused due to their failure to implement Municipal Ordinance 357 that prohibits the display of firecrackers in the public market and the lack of a Fire Safety Inspection Certificate from the vendors.