MANILA – The Department of Justice (DOJ) clarified that former Negros Oriental representative Arnolfo “Arnie” Teves Jr. remains under the custody of the Timor Leste police.
In a statement, the DOJ said the release and subsequent re-arrest of Teves from prison to the Polícia Nacional of Timor Leste is “part of the country’s process.”
“The Department was able to submit all requirements ahead of time and in a manner fully compliant with Timor Leste’s law,” contradicting the statement released by the camp of Teves.
“The Department is confident that the extradition proceedings will be successful. In addition, the former congressman may also still be deported depending on the direction taken by the Timor Leste government in coordination with the Philippines,” the agency added.
“We appreciate the steps currently being undertaken by the Timor Leste government to remove him from their territory and we eagerly anticipate his return to the Philippines so he can face the multiple murder charges,” it further said.
Atty. Ferdinand Topacio, the legal counsel of Teves, said on late Monday that his client had been released from preventive detention pending his extradition trial.
Topacio claimed that the Philippine government’s request for extradition was “made out of time and in a manner that is not sanctioned by practice and customary international law.”
“In other words, our government screwed up. Thus, his imprisonment was declared illegal,” Topacio said in a statement sent to Panay News.
Teves was arrested in Dili, Timor Leste last March while playing golf based on the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) red notice issued against him in February.
The red notice stemmed from the multiple murder charges filed against Teves for the killing of Negros Oriental governor Roel Degamo and others at the home of the then-governor on March 4, 2023.
Aside from the murder of Degamo, Teves and others have also been charged with the deaths of three individuals in Negros Oriental in 2019.
Teves and 12 others have also been designated as terrorists by the Anti-Terrorism Council, citing several alleged killings and harassment in Negros Oriental.
He was also expelled by the House of Representatives in August last year for disorderly conduct and continued absence despite an expired travel authority./PN
