WHAT WE JUST LEARNED. A division of the Supreme Court has granted a TRO (temporary restraining order) against the Sandiganbayan, which stopped it from further proceeding with two criminal cases of malversation of public funds and corruption.
That means the warrants of arrests were not to be issued yet against former Cebu City administrator Floro Casas Jr. and 10 other co-accused against whom probable cause was found by the Ombudsman. While corruption charge was bailable, malversation of the huge amount was not.
A petition for certiorari, which contains a prayer for a TRO was filed by Atty. Jun Casas November 28, 2025. The TRO was granted last Friday, December 12. The Ombudsman resolution had been signed October 2 but the papers formalizing the filing of information reached the Sandiganbayan only last November 24.
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SANDIGANBAYAN IS ORDERED BY THE HIGH COURT “from further proceeding” with the two criminal cases, “effective immediately and continuing until further orders” of the court. Covered by the order are the anti-graft court and all persons acting upon the Sandiganbayan’s orders.
Respondents were ordered by the SC division to comment -- not to file a motion to dismiss -- in 10 days from notice, on the petition for certiorari.
Apparently also benefited by the TRO are Casas Jr.’s co-accused: seven other Ombudsman-dismissed officials, including the then treasurer, accountant and public services department head, and employees, along with three private individuals connected with the suppliers/contractors Docast Construction & General Supply and JJ&J Construction and General Supply.
TRO WAS ISSUED EX-PARTE, meaning, the legal action, with its motions or communications, were made by Atty. Casas only without the other party present or notified. The petitioner had to show strongly “immediate harm” as the process is generally prohibited because of due-process concerns.
The Supreme Court order didn’t give a reason for the TRO except to say that after deliberating on the petition and acting on the prayer, it granted the request.
On Saturday, December 13, Atty. Jun Casas posted “Thank You, Lord” (with pressed-palms-in-prayer emoji) on his Facebook page. He didn’t reply to an inquiry, “Ombudsman has reconsidered or Sandiganbayan is restrained?”