To strengthen case, gov’t seeks access to Veloso

Mary Jane Veloso. AFP PHOTO

The Philippine government has asked the Indonesian government to grant it access to Mary Jane Veloso, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said Tuesday.

“We are requesting that we access Mary Jane to further strengthen the cases against the accused, as part of the still ongoing case buildup for purposes of the impending trial, de Lima said in a text message.

“Case buildup does not, or ought not to, stop upon filing of the criminal information in court. Remember, the required threshold now is -guilt beyond reasonable doubt and not just probable cause which was the requirement during the preliminary investigation stage,” she added.

The request to access Veloso is contained in the communication submitted by the government to Indonesia’s Attorney General and the Minister of Law and Human Rights.

De Lima said they have also informed Indonesia on the update to the complaint filed against Veloso’s alleged recruiters–Ma. Cristina Sergio and Julius Lacanilao.

Sergio and Lacanilao have been charged before the Talavera, Regional Trial Court for illegal recruitment, estafa and qualified human trafficking.

READ: DOJ files raps vs Veloso ‘recruiters’ in Nueva Ecija

Veloso was supposed to have been executed by firing squad along with eight other drug convicts on April 29 but Indonesian President Joko Widodo granted her a last-minute reprieve to allow Philippine authorities to pursue criminal charges against her alleged illegal recruiters.

READ: Veloso execution stopped

Earlier, cases for illegal recruitment were also filed against against Sergio and Lacanilao before the Nueva Ecija Regional Trial Court though the charges were based not on Veloso’s complaint but on three other complainants— Lorna Valino, Ana Maries Gonzales and Jenalyn Paraiso–who claimed they were also recruited by Sergio to work abroad. IDL