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Thursday, February 24, 2005
2 more suspects assail Quezon City warrants
By Grecar A. Nilles
CEBU CITY -- Two of the 11 men arrested for allegedly manufacturing shabu in a warehouse in Mandaue City are asking the court to quash the search warrants used in the raids on three warehouses.
Businessman Joseph Yu and Allan Yap Garcia, through lawyers Noel D. Archival and Melanie Marie Sanoria, alleged that the search warrants used in raiding three warehouses were issued without probable cause.
They also asked that the case against them be dismissed, after the search warrants are quashed.
Yu and Garcia are among the 11 men who will be arraigned Thursday for violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Law.
The two accused said the search warrant used in raiding the warehouse in Umapad, Mandaue City last Sept. 24 should be quashed since there was no compelling reason for the police to acquire the warrant in Quezon City.
"Granting, without admitting, that they indeed were able to verify and confirm that the respondents indeed manufactured dangerous drugs, then why did they have to apply for a search warrant in Quezon City and not in Mandaue City, when the courts that have jurisdiction in Mandaue City were open? It is therefore incredible for them to apply for a search warrant in Quezon City when there was no urgency that existed," the motion read.
No knowledge
As to the other search warrant used in the raid on the warehouse in Barangay Looc, Mandaue City, Yu and Garcia said that a Cebu City Regional Trial Court (RTC) erred in issuing the warrant that was implemented in a nearby city.
They said the Cebu City RTC has no jurisdiction over Mandaue and that there was also no urgency to justify the issuance of the warrant.
The two accused also said the policemen did not have personal knowledge of the existence of precursor chemicals and other materials needed for making shabu.
"The oath required must refer to the truth of the facts within the personal knowledge of the applicant for search warrant, and/or his witnesses, not of the facts merely reported by a person whom one considered to be reliable," the motion read.
As to the third warehouse, the search warrant used in the raid in Barangay Paknaan, Mandaue City was issued by a Mandaue City RTC.
Erroneous?
But Yu and Garcia still think the warrant was erroneously issued because there was allegedly no probable cause for its issuance.
"The application of the search warrant (used in the Paknaan warehouse) was made on Sept. 25, 2004 but the search on the warehouse was done on Sept. 24, 2004. Why did they have to apply for search warrants on separate days when they asserted that they knew already, through their month-long surveillance, that accused Yu has manufactured shabu?" the motion read.
The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency had led the raids that uncovered the operations of at least two shabu laboratories in Mandaue.
Shabu, precursor chemicals and equipment used for making the illegal drug were seized. After the drug and chemicals were verified and recorded, these were disposed of.
The 11 men, mostly foreigners, are all detained at the Mandaue City jail.
(February 24, 2005 issue)
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