Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo vs.

Sandiganbayan
G.R. No. 220598, 19 June 2016
FACTS:

Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and PCSO General Manager Benigno Aguas filed a petition for Certiorari
against the Resolution issued by Sandiganbayan dated 6 April 2015 and 10 September 2015, denying
their Petition to Demurrer to Evidence and Condemning GMA as the mastermind of the Plunder. GMA,
Aguas, and all public officers of PCSO was charged with the Plunder on the grounds of taking undue
advantage of their respective official positions, authority, and conspiring and confederating with one
another to willfully, unlawfully, and criminally amass, accumulate and acquire directly or indirectly the
ill-gotten wealth in the aggregate amount or total value of PHP365,997,915.00, more or less, by raiding
the public treasury. GMA and Aguas filed a Petition to Demurrer to Evidence but was denied on the
grounds of raiding the public treasury by withdrawing amount of money from Confidential and
Intelligence Funds from PCSO’s account. Clearly, the improper acquisition and illegal use of CIF funds,
which is obviously a government asset, will amount to a raid on the public treasury, and therefore fall into
the category of ill-gotten wealth. However, GMA argued that Sandiganbayan extirpate the most vital
provision of RA 7080 stating that “While the gravamen, indeed corpus delicti of the offense of plunder
under R.A. No. 7080, and as charged in the Information, is that the public officer ... "amasses,
accumulates or acquires ill-gotten wealth through a combination or series of overt or criminal acts as
described in Section l(d) hereof, in the aggregate amount or total value of at least Fifty million pesos
(P50,000,000.00)". Inferring that the crime must be proved first before a person can be convicted of the
crime. On the other hand, GMA contended that Sandiganbayan was not able to establish a fact that will
stress her guilt as a mastermind of looting the government funds or public treasury. Thus, the
Sandiganbayan gravely abuse its discretion in denying the Petition to Demurrer to Evidence, and
deducing that GMA is the mastermind of the plunder.

ISSUE:

Whether or not Sandiganbayan gravely abuse its discretion by denying the Demurrer to Evidence of
GMA and Aguas amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction.

RULING:

Sandiganbayan overtly committed grave abuse of its discretion by denying the Petition to Demurrers to
Evidence despite lack of evidence establishing the corpus delicti of amassing, accumulation and
acquisition of ill-gotten wealth through malversation or misuse of CIFs. Hence, the Prosecution has failed
to prove the predicate act of raids on the public treasury beyond reasonable doubt. The Supreme Court,
through Justice Bersamin, GRANTED the petition for certiorari; ANNULS and SET ASIDES the
Resolution issued in Criminal Case No. SB-12-CRM-0-174. The Court also granted the Petitioners’
respective demurrers to evidence and orders the immediate release of the petitioners.