The Regional Trial Court of Masbate province has dismissed the criminal complaints for illegal possession of firearms and explosives filed by the Philippine National Police against Batuan town mayor, Charmax Jan A. Yuson, paving the way to his eventual return to office.
In a 12-page decision, Arturo Clemente Revil, presiding judge of Branch 50, Masbate RTC, granted the motion of Yuson’s camp to suppress all the evidence the police purportedly found on their property on February 13, 2019, or some three months before the local elections.
The confiscated evidence allegedly found by the raiding team headed by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group includes assorted firearms, ammunition and explosives. The raid was on the basis of several search warrants issued by the Regional Trial Court in Manila.
At the time, the Yusons accused former PCSO board member Sandra Cam of instigating the raid and the police of planting evidence to stop Charmax from contesting the mayoralty post of Batuan with Cam’s son, Marco Martin.
Cam, her son and five of their supporters are now facing murder and frustrated murder cases filed by the National Bureau of Investigation before the Department of Justice over the killing of Charmax’s father and Batuan vice mayor, Charlie Yuson III.
The elder Yuson was assassinated and killed in broad daylight in Manila and his companions seriously wounded last October 9, 2019.
The killing took place after he was acquitted from the illegal possession of firearms and explosives that were filed against him and his son, Charmax.
In dismissing the case for illegal possession of firearms and explosives the PNP filed against Charmax, the judge noted that the police, through Maj. Dave Mahilum, first applied for the issuance of the search warrant against the Yusons at the sala of Quezon City executive judge Cecilyn Burgos-Villabert on January 10, 2019.
Villabert, however, turned down the application.
On February 6, 2019, Mahilum again applied for several search warrants against the Yusons before the sala of Virgilio Macaraig, presiding judge, Branch 37, Manila RTC, but without informing him of the rejection by the Quezon City RTC of the warrant application one month before.
In deciding in favor of Charmax, Revil noted that the action by the police constituted “forum shopping” and their search of the premises of the Yusons was likewise illegal as the warrants they used were void from the start.
The decision added that all the evidence the police purportedly recovered during last year’s raid were inadmissible as evidence for being the “fruits of a poisoned tree.”
Judge Revil also rejected the argument by the prosecutor that the petitions of Charmax be dismissed for his refusal to surrender and be formally charged in court.
Revil noted that despite remaining under hiding, there have been previous decisions where the accused can still pursue legal remedies, citing the cases of Sen. Panfilo Lacson, Sec. Gregorio Honasan of the Department of Information and Communications Technology and former Palawan governor Joel Reyes.
Charmax remains in hiding for fear of his life, saying that he would not last 24 hours once he agreed for the police to take him into custody.
With the dismissal of the cases against him, supporters of Charmax said they are now preparing for his return as Batuan mayor, which is presently being held by Batuan first councilor, Nelson Cambaya.
Cambaya became Batuan acting mayor by operation of law but is among the respondents along with Cam for the murder of Charmax’s father.