DAVAO CITY (November 15) — The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) in Region 11 arrested Tuesday Aniano Antalan, the former mayor of the Island Garden City of Samal (IGACOS) in his residence in Barangay Miranda, Babak District.
Antalan, 78, is facing three counts of indirect bribery and two counts in violation of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
But Antalan was granted his temporary liberty after posting P30,000 bail,
Antalan was arrested by virtue of the warrant of arrest issued by the 17th Division of the Sandiganbayan last October 22.
But according to Chief Inspector Milgrace Cajes Driz, CIDG-Davao City Field Unit chief, Antalan voluntarily surrendered on Tuesday morning, November 13, and was placed under the custody of Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Davao region (CIDG-11).
The Ombudsman records show, in 2012, Antalan who was Mayor then, signed the memorandum of agreement (MOA) between the local government of Igacos and a partylist Coop-National Confederation of Cooperatives and the Samal Island Multi-purpose Cooperative (SIMC) for the implementation of micro-finance projects in 2012.
Graft investigators found that SIMC gave PHP200,000 as a “gift” to Antalan.
Antalan allegedly received a cash gift from COOP-NATCCO amounting to P200,000, an accusation he he vehemently denied.
The former Mayor said, he will prove his innocence before the court.
He theorized that his political rivals are behind the case because he is running for mayor in the 2019 midterm elections.
The Sandiganbayan found Antalan guilty of grave misconduct.
Antalan was mayor of IGACOS from 2012 to 2016.-ezc/NewsLine.ph
