Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 14) — Embattled Negros Oriental lawmaker Arnolfo Teves Jr. filed a motion on Friday before the Department of Justice to dismiss complaints for illegal possession of firearms and explosives filed against him for “utter lack of evidence to support a finding of probable cause.”
Teves has been tagged by authorities as the mastermind in Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo’s March 4 assassination.
The complaints were filed by the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) after authorities seized several firearms, ammunitions, and a grenade from a building allegedly owned by Teves at Basay, Negros Oriental last March 10.
However, the camp of Teves argued that the PNP-CIDG \”miserably failed to prove the element of possession, the gravamen of both offenses.\”
\”In sum, complainant, with their evidence, even left uncontroverted, miserably failed to discharge their duty to establish probable cause against Respondent Teves as nothing has been shown to support his alleged constructive possession of any of the confiscated articles, much less of the premises they were allegedly found,\” the motion read.
Teves, who is currently staying in Cambodia according to the DOJ, was represented by his lawyer Ferdinand Topacio.
On March 22, the House of Representatives suspended Teves for 60 days after he refused to return to the country following the expiration of his travel authority.
The DOJ already dismissed last month one of the several complaints for illegal possession of firearms lodged against Teves.
