Sandigan opens Corona bank records

For the second time, the Sandiganbayan flip-flopped on the Office of the Ombudsman’s bid to scrutinize the bank accounts of the late chief justice Renato Corona and his wife Cristina in connection with their P130-million civil forfeiture case.

In a seven-page resolution promulgated on Oct. 25, the court’s Second Division reversed its April 28, 2016 ruling granting the Coronas’ motion to recall the subpoena earlier issued concerning the couple’s bank accounts.

The resolution was penned by division chairman Associate Justice Oscar Herrera Jr. with the concurrence of Associate Justices Michael Frederick Musngi and Lorifel Pahimna.

The court gave weight to the prosecution’s argument that the presentation of the Corona couple’s bank records would not violate Republic Act 1405 or the Bank Secrecy Law.

Bank records are exempted from the confidentiality rule if there is an order from a competent court for their presentation in connection with “cases of bribery or dereliction of duty of public officials or in cases where money deposited or invested is the subject matter of litigation,” the court said.

In a subpoena issued on Jan. 18, 2016, the Second Division ordered the production of bank transaction records of the Corona couple, including those pertaining to an account under the name of the late chief justice.

Representatives from several banks were also summoned to testify on the subpoenaed bank documents in connection with the P130.59-million civil forfeiture case filed against the Coronas in March 2014.

The forfeiture case is an offshoot of Corona’s impeachment trial for failing to declare several assets from 2001 to 2011.

The Second Division directed its sheriff’s office to freeze the couple’s assets but sheriff Alexander Valencia said in a March 18, 2016 report that only P15,000 of the Coronas’ money has been frozen.

The sheriff’s office also garnished several condominium units and a parcel of land owned the couple.