Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 2) — The Supreme Court has lifted its order stopping the plea bargain deal of retired Major General Carlos Garcia.
“Considering the prosecution’s failure to prove private respondent Garcia’s guilt for plunder and money laundering beyond reasonable doubt, respondent Sandiganbayan cannot be said to have gravely abused its discretion in approving the assailed Plea Bargaining Agreement,” read the decision penned by Justice Marvic Leonen promulgated last September but only released this Tuesday.
The high court also lifted the 2013 temporary restraining order that stopped the anti-graft court from implementing its 2010 resolution approving the former military comptroller’s request for bail.
A plunder case was filed against Garcia in 2005, nearly two years after customs agents at the San Francisco International Airport in the United States seized $100,000 (about ₱4.76 million) of undeclared cash from his sons Juan Paolo and Ian Carl.
Their mother Clarita had claimed the cash came from Garcia’s salary as a two-star general, and their family’s two corporations.
Garcia allegedly amassed ill-gotten wealth worth ₱300 million while he was comptroller of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. Under the plea bargaining agreement, Garcia would return ₱135 million to the government – a deal that was challenged by the Office of the Solicitor General for being “lopsided.”
