QC judge orders arrest of shabu lab suspects

A Quezon City judge ordered yesterday the arrest of 10 suspects involved in the operation of an alleged shabu laboratory in Xavierville Subdivision. The suspects were earlier released from a Quezon City jail after drug charges against them were dismissed by another court.

In an order, Judge Jaime Salazar Jr. of Branch 103 issued the warrants of arrest against Jimmy Chua, Man Chuck Li, Willy Ang, Tom Chua, Lai Nar, SamLi Chua, Concepcion Andohon, Jessilyn Lamosa, Sally Ong and Jamil Maranay.

The arrest order was issued by Salazar after he reversed, lifted and set aside the Nov. 15 order of Judge Emilio Leachon, who quashed the search warrants and information filed by the police against the 10 suspects.

After the suspects were released, Assistant City Prosecutor Luis Macaren immediately filed a motion for inhibition and recall of the release order.

Salazar was only able to act on Macaren’s motion after the case was re-raffled to his sala.

"Assuming for the sake of argument that the search warrants should be quashed for having been issued in violation of Rule 126 of the Rules of Court, the dismissal of the cases was not correct inasmuch as the mere fact that evidence following from said warrant was inadmissible would not prevent the prosecution from introducing other forms and classes of evidence that would prove the guilt of all the accused," Salazar said in his one-page order.

The judge stressed that the issuance of arrest warrants against the accused was without prejudice to the resolution of the other issues raised by both the prosecution and defense in the motion for reconsideration.

Leachon had ordered the quashing of Search Warrant No. 02-2922 issued on July 16, 2002 by Manila Regional Trial Court Judge Enrico Lanzanas and the quashing of all information filed in the case against the accused after the prosecution failed to present the lone witness in court.

The witness referred to is Roberto Sanchez, the alleged informant of the agents of the Regional Intelligence Special Service Office of Camp Bagong Diwa in Bicutan.

The informant came to the office of PO3 Albert Amurao at Camp Bagong Diwa on July 11, 2002, claiming Sally Ong and Jimmy Chua were engaged in illegal drug activities in Quezon City. He also submitted a plastic bag containing traces of shabu.

On July 16, 2002, agents applied for a search warrant from a Manila court.

Amurao testified before the court that Sanchez was not present during the raid at 15-B Gonzales street in Xavierville and 75-C Salvador street in Varsity Hills. He added that the last time he saw Sanchez was during a awarding ceremony at Malacañang last July.

Leachon questioned the issuance of the search warrant in Manila noting that it was not filed with the court which has primary jurisdiction over the case.