Antonio Trillanes IV leaves for US, Europe

MANILA, Philippines — Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV took the 3 a.m. Eva Air flight at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1 yesterday for trips to the United States and Europe.

Wearing a black coat, Trillanes presented to airport immigration officers his passport and travel clearance issued by a Makati judge handling his rebellion case.

Judge Elmo Alameda of Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 150 had granted Trillanes’ request to travel to some parts of Europe and the US.

“Taking therefore into account the previous conduct demonstrated by Senator Trillanes and the purpose of his travel, coupled with the fact that he is not considered a flight risk, the court is persuaded to grant his request to travel abroad,” Alameda said recently.

Alameda also said the permission to allow Trillanes to travel abroad came after he posted P200,000 bail for his rebellion case, which was revived after he upheld President Duterte’s Proclamation No. 572.?Duterte’s proclamation has nullified the amnesty granted to Trillanes.

Alameda said in a previous report that the hold departure order issued against him is temporarily lifted.

Trillanes’ lawyer Reynaldo Robles recently asked Alameda to allow the senator to attend several events in Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Barcelona in Spain and London in the United Kingdom from Dec. 11, 2018 to Jan. 12, 2019.

Trillanes is also set to attend events in California, Washington and Maryland in the US.

The Department of Justice filed on Tuesday a motion asking the court to stop Trillanes from leaving the country, claiming he is considered a flight risk pending his cases in the court and in several local courts in Metro Manila.