Fuente botched robbery Judge warns vs any move to delay case

CEBU, Philippines - For the third time, the arraignment of Merlyn Lagitao, one of the accused in the botched robbery of a bank teller in Fuente Osmeña, was postponed due to unresolved motions.

Judge Wilfredo Navarro of Regional Trial Court Branch 19 reset the arraignment of Lagitao to November 7, 2012 with a warning that he will no longer entertain any more postponements.

“I will not allow any postponements. This court will not tolerate any postponements. You are delaying the proceedings,” he said in an open court.

Defense counsel Rameses Villagonzalo said they were not the ones who delayed the proceedings and in fact they want to have a pre-trial of the case. He is the counsel of Rolien Castro.

But Navarro said no as it would be impractical to have the court to repeatedly do the pre-trial and to hear the same case.

Lawyer Bryan Bantillan, counsel of Lagitao and her live-in partner Junjun Cabando, manifested that they were not delaying the proceedings. Navarro laughed at Bantillan.

Bantillan reasoned that they were not delaying the pre-trial: “This is a serious ground that there is a pending motion for reconsideration and we’re talking of the right of my client. He reiterated to the media that once his client Lagitao will be arraigned, the issue of the legality of the arrest will be waived.

He added that from the start they were questioning the warrantless arrest of his client and there was no due process.

Navarro then directed state prosecutor Aida Sanchez to file her opposition to the motion for reconsideration filed by Bantillan within five days.

After the court denied the omnibus motion filed by Lagitao for the quashal of the information, for her release and to remand the case to the Prosecutor’s Office, Bantillan filed a motion for reconsideration.

In their motion for reconsideration, Bantillan reiterated that the court has not acquired jurisdiction over Lagitao because she was illegally arrested. With that, they seek for the dismissal of the robbery with homicide case filed against Lagitao. Robbery with homicide is a non-bailable offense.

Furthermore, Bantillan questioned the one-page order of Navarro for not citing the grounds as to the denial of their omnibus motion.

Bantillan added that the motions filed by Castro and Lagitao were not the same and not even related nor connected.

Meanwhile, Cabando and Castro have already been arraigned and they pleaded not guilty to the crime charged. — (FREEMAN)