Arrest warrants out vs Yanson siblings over carnapping charges
MANILA, Philippines — A regional trial court last week issued warrants of arrest against four members of the Yanson family and their alleged accomplices for allegedly stealing vehicles belonging to the country's biggest bus firm almost a year ago.
In separate rulings dated June 4 and June 5 acquired by Philstar.com, Presiding Judge Sue Lynn Lowie-Jolingan of Bacolod City Regional Trial Court Branch 53 issued warrants of arrest against siblings Emily Yanson, Roy Yanson, Ricardo Yanson Jr., Maria Yanson-Lopez along with Jerica Leanne Ramos, Jerina Louise Ramos Ma. Judy Alcala for supposed violations of the New Anti-Carnapping Act of 2016.
The Yanson family owns the Bacolod-based Vallacar Transit, Inc., whose parent company operates 4,800 buses run by 18,000 operators and employees in 15 terminals across the nation and which was the complainant in the case.
According to court records, the accused, “conspiring, cooperating and confederating with each other, did then and there, willfully, unlawfully and feloniously took possession and control, with intent to gain” a Mitsubishi L-300 model 2012 and two Foton Wing Vans belonging to the bus company on August 6, 2019.
Dario Jaojao, one of the company's Wing Van drivers, said in his affidavit that he was told by a warehouse supervisor to drive the vehicle from the admin building of VTI to Ceres Pasalubong Commissary in Bacolod City, surrender its key to the facility's security guard, and then "move out of the premises."
Included in the separate affidavit of Gary Manayon, who represents VTI, was an incident record form saying that the vehicle was reported as stolen that night.
"Aside from the three vehicles owned and registered in the name of VTI, a Mitsubishi Delica closed van model 1995 was also included in the complaint filed by the company, but the court dismissed the case involving that vehicle," Vallacar Transit, Inc. said in a statement.
READ: Bacolod judge issues warrant of arrest for four warring Yanson siblings
The four siblings earlier faced a criminal case over an attempt on VTI’s main office in July last year, when the security personnel of the facility were replaced by those of another agency in an attempt to take over its management.
This yielded separate arrest warrants filed by Judge Abraham Bayona of Branch 7 of the Municipal Trial Court of Bacolod City against the four, this time over charges of grave coercion.
“After careful evaluation of the resolution of the investigating prosecutor and the supporting documents under Section 6(b) concerning Section 6(a) of Rule 112 of the Revised Rule on Criminal Procedure, the court finds probable cause exists and that there is a necessity of placing the accused under the immediate custody so as not to frustrate the ends of justice,” the earlier warrant acquired by Philstar.com read.
Police Col. Anthony Gantang, officer-in-charge of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group-Negros Occidental, said in separate court reports dated May 31, 2020 and June 1, 2020 that when warrant that the accused were not in their homes when police came to serve the warrants.
According to Gantang's reports, police were told by house helpers and security guards that two of the siblings were out of the country.
All of the warrants were thus listed as "not implemented and unserved," while Gantang asked the Bureau of Immigration to confirm if the four were in fact abroad.
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"The case against the four Yanson siblings and their accomplices arose from a complaint filed by VTI operations manager Gary Manayon against them for grave coercion and carnapping when the Yanson siblings, backed by the security guards of A-Y 76 Security Specialists Inc., took possession and control, with intent to gain, of VTI’s main office on July 7, 2019," the company added in its statement.
The family has long been split into two warring factions seeking control of the company. — Franco Luna
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