The Sandiganbayan on Friday affirmed its ruling denying the convicted former Palawan governor Joel Reyes’s appeal for early release from jail.
In a resolution dated October 24, the anti-graft court’s third division held that Reyes was unable to raise any new valid argument in his motion to reverse its August 22 ruling.
Reyes was convicted for graft case and was detained at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig on January 17, 2018.
On his motion dated September 2, Reyes reasoned that the Sandiganbayan’s ruling revoking his bail is immaterial to his present prayer for immediate release.
“The release of an accused from detention, regardless of whether before or after conviction, is mandated once the period of accused’s detention is equal to the minimum of the penalty for the offense charged,” cited on Reyes’s motion.
Sandiganbayan stressed that the Supreme Court (SC) expressly recognized that the service of the minimum term only entitles the accused to be eligible for parole and does not guarantee immediate release contrary to what Reyes insists.
The nine-page resolution was penned by Presiding Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang with the concurrence of Associate Justices Bernelito Fernandez and Ronald Moreno.
