Supreme Court orders: Drop graft case vs Mike Arroyo

MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court (SC) has ordered the Sandiganbayan to drop the complaint for graft filed against former first gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo over the allegedly anomalous purchase of helicopters by the Philippine National Police (PNP) amounting to P104.9 million in 2009.

In a 19-page resolution penned by now retired Justice Rosmari Carandang dated Dec. 1, 2021 but released to the public only on Sunday, the SC Special Third Division granted Arroyo’s motion for reconsideration, saying he should not have been charged in the first place.

The Office of the Ombudsman and Sandiganbayan committed grave abuse of discretion in finding probable cause against Arroyo, the high court ruled.

“The element of conspiracy between the public officers and Arroyo has not been proven. The evidence submitted by the prosecution was insufficient to maintain a reasonable belief that Arroyo was probably liable for violating Section 3 (e) of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act,” the resolution read.

Arroyo was accused of taking part in the transaction, which involved the purchase of a brand new and two pre-owned helicopters by the PNP despite the National Police Commission’s requirement to buy only brand new air assets.

Based on the complaint filed by the ombudsman before the Sandiganbayan, the sale of the pre-owned helicopters supposedly owned by Arroyo caused undue injury to the government in the amount of P34.6 million.

In an affidavit, Lionair owner Archibald Po said that through his help, Arroyo purchased helicopters from manufacturer Robinsons Helicopter Co. in 2003. But these were registered through another company that he owned at the time, Asian Spirit, which was eligible to import tax-free.

When Arroyo wanted to sell the helicopters, these were transferred to Lionair, which allegedly entered into an agreement with Manila Aerospace Products Trading Corp. (MAPTRA).

Po said they made it appear that MAPTRA was Lionair’s marketing arm so it could enter into a transaction with the PNP.

Arroyo maintained that he had no connections with MAPTRA.