DOJ issues hold departure order against Gen. Garcia

UPDATED 3:15 p.m. - The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday issued a hold departure order against former Armed Forces comptroller Carlos Garcia because of a pending tax evasion case against him. Garcia is out on bail despite a pending plunder case against him at the anti-graft court Sandiganbayan. Last week, he pleaded guilty to a lower offense because of the plea bargain agreement he made with the Office of the Ombudsman. Plunder is a non-bailable offense but the Sandiganbayan allowed the former general to post bail after he pleaded guilty the offense of direct bribery. "In an effort to avert any attempt by disgraced former AFP comptroller Major General Carlos F. Garcia to leave the country, I issued a hold departure order against him," De Lima said at a news briefing on Thursday. "Hindi pwedeng palusutin iyan eh (We can't just let him walk away). It's unacceptable to the [Aquino] administration. It will again be a serious blow to its anti-corruption efforts," added the Justice secretary. GMANews.TV is trying to reach Garcia for comment as of posting time. De Lima added that she was compelled to issue the order because the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), an attached agency of the DOJ, requested that Garcia be prevented from leaving the country. The OSG likewise planned to intervene in the plunder case against Garcia. "Whereas, the Office of the Solicitor General requested that Carlos F. Garia be barred from leaving the country it appearing that said Office is minded to intervene in the criminal charges against Carlos F. Garcia pending before the Sandiganbayan for plunder charges," a portion of the hold departure order read. De Lima said Department of Justice Circular No. 41 allows her to issue the hold departure order motu proprio or on her own initiative. The DOJ circular is titled "Consolidated Rules and Regulations Governing the Issuance and Implementation of Hold Departure Orders, Watchlist Orders, and Allow Departure Orders." Under the circular, the DOJ secretary can issue a hold departure order on her own initiative "in a particular case pending before the department where the adverse party is the government or any of its agencies or instrumentalities." In this case, the adverse party is the BIR. De Lima has strongly criticized the supposed "illegal" plea bargain agreement between Garcia and the Ombudsman. "The deal between the Ombudsman and Gen. Garcia is tainted with illegality from the start, and should be nullified for having been made in clear violation of the pertinent provision of the Rules of Court on plea bargaining," De Lima said earlier this week. Tax evasion In 2005, the Bureau of Internal Revenue filed with the Department of Justice a tax evasion complaint against Garcia and his wife, Clarita, for supposedly under-declaring their incomes for the years 2002 and 2003. The BIR's investigation showed that Garcia under-declared his income by P3.4 million. The bureau added that his wife made cash transactions amounting to P7.88 million in 2002 despite having no source of income. The BIR said Clarita did not declare the amount. The complaint has been lodged against them five years ago, but the matter is only up for resolution this year. De Lima said she will ask the DOJ prosecutor handling the complaint why it took him five years to resolve the matter. "I'm actually surprised why that case has not been resolved yet," she added. Plunder In 2005, a military court found Garcia guilty of violating the Articles of War 96 (undeclared wealth) and 97 (conduct prejudicial to good military order and discipline). The charges stemmed from allegations that he failed to declare his true assets and enjoyed permanent resident status (having a “green card") in the United States. He was stripped of his rank and was dishonorably discharged from the service. His benefits were also forfeited. He was likewise sentenced to two years of hard labor. After the military court concluded its own hearing on the case with a conviction, the ball was tossed to the Sandiganbayan. Garcia, who was in charge of disbursement of military funds when he held the post of AFP comptroller, is by far the highest-ranked military official undergoing trial by the anti-graft court for the crime of plunder, or graft and corruption on a massive scale. A member of the Philippine Military Academy class of 1971, Garcia was charged with plunder, a non-bailable offense, and violation of the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) Section 4-A for allegedly amassing P300 million in bribe money. However, he entered a "not guilty plea" to these charges. He instead pleaded guilty to charges of the lesser offense of direct bribery, a bailable offense under Section 4-B of the AMLA. Over the weekend, Garcia was released from detention at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center in Quezon City after posting a P60,000 bail on December 17. Aside from him, also charged with plunder are Garcia's wife and three sons, who are alleged to have either brought or spent the questionable wealth. They are all detained at different locations in the United States and are currently the subject of extradition cases – VVP, GMANews.TV