THE Court of Appeals’ decision that reportedly lifted the arrest order against Rep. Michael Romero is not yet final, according to the lawyers of Harbour Centre Port Terminal Inc. that filed the criminal complaint against the lawmaker.
HCPTI lawyers led by Christian Chan of the Placido and Chan Law Offices said the “warrants of arrest against Michael Romero and his co-accused issued by the trial court are still in effect since under the Rules of Court, the complainants against them have 15 days from receipt of the CA order to file a motion for reconsideration,” Chan said in a statement.
“Assuming that the motion is denied, HCPTI can still elevate the same to the Supreme Court and only after exhausting all legal remedies will the resolution of the appellate court become final.”
Chan said “the case before the CA is not one of the actions laid down under the Rules of Court which allows for the immediate execution of the decision, and that being the case, assuming that the news article that appeared in one newspaper is true, the warrants of arrest against Michael Romero et al. are still valid and in effect.
“The denial of the motion to withdraw information, as well as the judicial determination of probable cause, are within the exclusive prerogative of the trial court judge.
“The basis for the motion to withdraw the information has already been overturned by no less than the Department of Justice and hence, the Court of Appeals had no legal basis whatsoever to overturn the decision of the RTC of Manila in denying the motion to withdraw the information. Furthermore, the existence of prejudicial question, if any, should not result in the dismissal of the criminal case, contrary to what the Court of Appeals held.”
Chan said the copies of the CA ruling were first furnished the media “when HCPTI, the complainant, has yet to receive its own copy.”
The arrest order against Romero issued by Judge Cicero Jurado Jr. of Branch 11 of the Manila City Regional Trial Court stemmed from the qualified theft charges involving some P3.4 million that the lawmaker and two others had been accused of stealing from the HCPTI in a complaint filed by the firm through lawyer Jerome Canlas.
Bail is not allowed for qualified theft if the stolen amount is P222,000 or more.
Romero has failed to submit himself physically to the jurisdiction of the Manila RTC since Feb. 6 when it quashed his motion to suspend the execution of his warrant of arrest.
Subsequently, the Manila RTC issued an order on Feb. 27 denying the urgent motion for reconsideration filed by Romero and Edwin Jeremillo, former chief operating officer of HCPTI. Also charged and ordered arrested was former HCPTI cashier Felicia T. Aquino.