COURT MARTIAL AFFIRMED IN MAJOR ANTI-CORRUPTION

UNCLAS MANILA 001865 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EB E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV ECON KCOR SOCI RP SUBJECT: COURT MARTIAL AFFIRMED IN MAJOR ANTI-CORRUPTION CASE REF: A. MANILA 1726 ¶B. MANILA 1342 ¶C. MANILA 141 ¶1. (U) On April 26, 2006, Armed Forces Chief of Staff Generoso Senga affirmed the guilty verdict in the court martial of former Major General Carlos Garcia on corruption charges. The court martial sentenced Garcia on December 2, 2005 to two years' confinement at hard labor, and the verdict had been awaiting the approval of Senga since that time. Senga's approval will eventually be transmitted to the Board of Review (composed of three senior officers of the Judge Advocate General's Office, or, "JAGO") for evaluation, but no timeframe has been set. Afterwards, the case will be forwarded to the President for approval or pardon. The President's decision will be final. ¶2. (U) Garcia has been detained at the PNP Custodial Center since October 18, 2004, serving a two-year military sentence (which includes time served while awaiting trial). A source at the Sandiganbayan (the Philippine anti-graft court) has stated, however, that Garcia will remain in custody even after his two-year sentence is finished this October because of pending cases of plunder and perjury before the court. The arraignment for the plunder case of Garcia proceeded on April 25, 2006 at the Second Division of the Sandiganbayan. Garcia entered a plea of not guilty and a pre-trial hearing was scheduled for May 25. Kenney