Defense accuses gov’t of using ‘ghost’ witness vs political prisoners

NEARLY 8 YEARS AND COUNTING Vicente Ladlad (left), a peace consultant for the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, and his friends Alberto and Virginia Villamor are shown at one of their last in-person hearings at a Quezon City court in April 2019, shortly before the pandemic. The septuagenarianshave been detained since 2018 at Camp Bagong Diwa on charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives. They claim, however, that the guns and grenades seized from them were planted. —Photo courtesy of Kapatid

MANILA, Philippines — Authorities allegedly made up the informant whose testimony was used as the basis for obtaining the search warrant used against political prisoners Vicente Ladlad, Alberto Villamor and wife Virginia, according to the testimony presented by their lawyers in court on Tuesday.

Ladlad, 76, a peace consultant for the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), was arrested with the Villamors in his house in Novaliches, Quezon City on Nov. 8, 2018. All three were charged with illegal possession of firearms and grenades. They have since been detained at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City. Illegal possession of grenades is a nonbailable offense.

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A former president of the homeowners’ association who is also a barangay watchman testified before the Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 93 that the supposed informant identified in court documents as “Carlos de Dios” does not exist.

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The defense said their testimonies supports its argument that the charges against their clients were based on a manufactured case.

READ: PH’s oldest political prisoner a free man at 85

“This case was built on air. Despite the moves of the prosecution to prevent the presentation of the judicial affidavit of one of the witnesses of the barangay, the defense has another witness who is the former association president,” Fides Lim, wife of Ladlad, told the Inquirer. She is also the spokesperson for Kapatid, a support group for political prisoners.

‘Simple truths’

During cross-examination, the witness told the court that he has resided in the barangay for 30 years. He also confirmed that he signed a document back in 2018 that stated there was no record of a resident there named Carlos de Dios.

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“Today is a blessed day for me, for the families of political prisoners, for my husband Vicente Ladlad, for Alberto and Virginia,” Lim said.

READ: Ex-PDLs file complaint vs 5 PNP execs over alleged illegal arrests

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“We have been redeemed by the simple truths,” she added, saying that by proving that there was no such person, “the case falls flat in its face.”

Lim also questioned the integrity of the Philippine justice system, pointing to what she described as the prosecution’s reliance on a “ghost witness” in the case.

“What kind of justice system do we have? There is a ‘ghost witness,’ the so-called Carlos de Dios, who was never presented by the prosecution as a witness, yet his testimony served as the basis for the issuance of the search warrant,” she said.

Lim said her husband’s health has deteriorated over the years, adding that he has been taking a lot of medication for his asthma, hypertension, edema and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Deteriorating health

On the other hand, 75-year-old Virginia Villamor can no longer walk without assistance due to a hip injury she sustained before her arrest, while her 72-year-old husband Alberto has diabetes. The couple are detained separately.

Lim expressed frustration that Sen. Rodante Marcoleta, who is charged with a nonbailable plunder case, is under hospital arrest due to mild pneumonia.

“We are not demanding heaven on earth … in the case of Sen. Marcoleta and others, they easily get hospital arrest. We don’t need to pretend. We don’t need to look for diseases, and we have records to prove these,” Lim said.

On Wednesday, the Sandiganbayan Third Division ordered Marcoleta transferred to the New Quezon City Jail in Payatas after tests showed he was fit enough to be detained. He was arrested on July 6 but had since been detained at the Philippine National Police General Hospital in Camp Crame after he complained of chest pains (See related story on Page A3).

Lim said the Villamors, who are their friends, lived in Ladlad’s house and were just dragged into the case. “These two were made to suffer. That’s why this case is so unjust,” she added.

“This case has been dragging on. It has been, in fact, been transferred from one judge to another under the same court. Meantime, the defendants in this baseless case are made to needlessly suffer. The next hearing is still in October,” Lim said.

According to Kapatid, Ladlad and the Villamors are among the final seven detainees out of 76 people arrested under controversial search warrants issued by Quezon City Judge Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert.

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The group added that the other 69 had been acquitted and freed after the Court of Appeals, Supreme Court and other courts declared the warrants void over serious defects and violations of due process. /cb