The Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) between the Philippines and the US will be invoked for the return of retired police colonel Royina Garma, Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said.
Under the MLAT, the scope of assistance to be provided by the two countries includes the taking of testimony or statements of persons, providing documents and items of evidence, as well as transferring persons in custody for testimony or other purposes.
“I am asking the immigration people to do the formal work but anyway we have the MLAT or the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty so we will work this out,” Remulla, quoted by an ABS-CBN News report, said.
Garma earlier directly tagged former President Rodrigo Duterte to a nationwide implementation of a deadly drug war in Davao City.
Garma was arrested and detained in San Francisco, California last November 7, 2024, because of her canceled US visa.
Remulla also confirmed that Garma’s visa cancellation was because of the Magnitsky Act which authorizes the US government to sanction foreign government officials worldwide who are human rights offenders, freeze their assets, and ban them from entering the US.
“Kasi Magnitsky Act iyan, they are after her properties that she stored there, her money laundering activities and of course the human rights violations that were part of Magnitsky Act,” Remulla, quoted by the report further said.
While there is no timetable yet for the return of Garma, Remulla said she will be brought back to the Philippines as soon as possible. “There is no clock that we can use to tick off the time so we just have to play it by ear,” Remulla said.
