Sandigan junks Estrada’s bid to consolidate plunder, graft cases

MANILA, Philippines — The Sandiganbayan Fifth Division has junked the bid of Sen. Jinggoy Estrada to consolidate his plunder and two cases of graft in a single division, saying the move would only cause a delay.

In an eight-page resolution promulgated on Wednesday, June 24, the anti-graft court division denied Estrada’s motions to consolidate or jointly hear his three cases in the Second Division.

Estrada camp argued that the three cases filed against him are interrelated, but the court said: “The consolidation or joint trial of the plunder case with either or both anti-graft cases will unduly delay the latter.”

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Estrada’s graft case under Case No. E-SB-26-CRM-0004 was raffled first in the Second Division, while the senator’s another graft case (Case No. E-SB-26-CRM-0005) and plunder case (Case No.E-SB-26-CRM-0006) were raffled in the Fifth Division.

Had Estrada’s motion been granted, the 2018 Revised Internal Rules of the Sandiganbayan stated that the case would be consolidated under the division with the lowest docket number, in this case the Second Division (0004).

The P573 million plunder case under Case No. 0006 involved transactions in Metro Manila and Oriental Mindoro totaling P350 million, and in Bulacan totaling P213 million.

The graft case under Case No.0005 only involved the said P350 million transaction.

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Aside from Estrada, the respondents in plunder (Case No. 0006) and graft (0005) cases, are former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Secretary Manuel Bonoan; and former DPWH engineering officials from the National Capital Region, namely assistant district engineer Denryl Caesar Cortuna and district engineers Manny Bulusan and Arturo Gonzales Jr.

On the other hand, the other graft charge under Case No. 0004 involves the transactions in Bulacan worth P213 million, and only had Estrada and Bonoan as respondents.

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“While indeed the plunder case shares a common question of fact with each of the anti-graft cases, a consolidation of these cases would defeat the purpose of consolidation and impede the progress of the latter,” the resolution said.

The resolution noted that Estrada was already arraigned in the Second Division, which handles graft case under Case No. 0004.

“Proceeding on its own, with only two accused instead of five, it cannot stand to benefit from being consolidated with a case with pending petitions for bail against three more accused,” the resolution said of the Second Division.

Also, the resolution noted that DPWH officials Cortuna, Bulusan, and Gonzales also has a pending petition for bail for their plunder case.

“Should a consolidation or joint trial be effected and either or both anti-graft cases be tried jointly with the plunder

case, they stand to be stalled for as long as the court conducts hearings on the bail petitions,” the resolution said. “Proceeding independently, on the other hand, the anti-graft cases, which do not require a bail hearing, may go directly to trial.”

Three of the accused, namely Cortuna, Bulusan, and Gonzales would be “compelled to participate in proceedings they are complete strangers to.”

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“It is not hard to see how this spars with the avowed purpose of consolidation,” it said. /mr