Singled out?

Manila court orders arrest
of Porac mayor, legal team
questions due process
By Joann Manabat
THE Pasig Regional Trial Court Branch 265 has issued an arrest warrant against Porac Mayor Jaime “Jing” Capil on seven counts of violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, with bail set at P90,000.
This, as Capil’s legal team raised due process concerns because the local chief executive has not yet receive the arrest warrant.
Atty. Shereen Sian, Capil’s legal counsel, said they are yet to receive official notice or a copy of the Information and learned of the arrest order only through media reports.
“We cannot make a full detailed comment yet kasi wala kaming hawak na information kung saan ang pinanggagalingan ng warrant plus we have no copy of the warrant except what we saw on the media,” Sian said.
“We were surprised that there was a copy to the media of the warrant when kami mismo walang official na sineserve sa amin,” she added.
Sian said Capil’s legal team will verify the warrant with the court and the mayor is prepared to voluntarily surrender and post bail once officially notified.
Capil Not Hiding
In a statement released to GMA Integrated News, Capil said he is not in hiding because his legal team is already in the process of preparing for his bail.
Capil has called for fairness and due process of the law as he submits himself to the process saying he is ready to face all the charges against him.
“Hindi po ako nagtatago. Gaya po ng pagharap ko sa Senado at Kongreso, pati na rin sa Provincial Hearings upang sagutin lahat ng katanungan, hindi po ako tumatakas sa proseso ng batas.”
“Ako po at ang aming legal team ay agarang nagsimula na sa proseso ng bail. Sa katunayan po ang aking legal team ay nagsimula na sa korte kanina pang umaga upang maayos na proseso ng bail, subalit may proseso po ng sinusunod ang korte kung paano makapagbayad ako ng bail,” Capil said.
“Bukod po doon, wala po kaming natangap na kopya ng information, kinailangan po naming kumuha ng lahat ng clearances na kakailanganin sa aking pag-bail. Lahat po ng kailangan, ginagawa at sinusunod po naming ayon sa itinakdang utos ng korte.
“Kailanman hindi sumagi sa isip ko ang tumakas, tumalikod sa aking responsibilidad at lalo na pa sagutin ang lahat ng paratang sa akin. May batas po tayo. Sumasailalim po ako sa proseso. Hiling ko lang po ay ibigay sakin ang fair at due process of the law.”
Pasig Court Issues Arrest Warrant
The order, dated November 28, directs authorities to arrest Capil over charges filed by the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) following a raid on Philippine offshore gaming operator Lucky South 99 in Porac.
“Kami ng CIDG nag file ng case against kay Capil sa DOJ. Yung DOJ case was already endorsed to the Ombudsman,” said PAOCC communications chief Marvin dela Paz, on Monday.
The graft charges linked Capil to the operations of Lucky South 99, a Porac-based POGO initially presented as a business process outsourcing company.
Authorities raided the compound in June 2024 and reported alleged human trafficking and other illegal activities.
Cassandra Ong, a representative of Lucky South, is also wanted by the Pasig court with the Department of Justice offering a P1 million reward for information on her whereabouts.
Ong is accused of qualified human trafficking and was released from detention in December 2024.
Capil was previously dismissed by the Office of the Ombudsman on April 4 for gross negligence for allegedly failing to stop POGO operations in his area.
The Ombudsman ordered the forfeiture of his retirement benefits and imposed a lifetime ban from public office, but Capil was re-elected in May as his legal team maintains the ruling is not yet final and remains under appeal.
Singled Out?
Reviews of other POGO-related raids including those in Makati, Pasay, Las Piñas, Cavite, and Clark Freeport show that these operations have not resulted in similar investigations or criminal cases involving local officials.
Media reports from those incidents mentioned possible links to various regulatory agencies, but no charges have been filed to date. This differs from the situation in Porac, where Capil is currently the only local official facing prosecution.
In Alice Guo’s case, although she was elected mayor of Bamban, Tarlac, where a POGO hub was raided, the court ruled in June that, as a Chinese citizen, she was never eligible to hold the position.
On November 20, Guo was found guilty of human trafficking and sentenced to life imprisonment.
No charges of human trafficking have been lodged against Capil.
Both POGO operations in Bamban, Tarlac; and Porac, Pampanga, were monitored by PAGCOR, which collected revenues.

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