More child abuse raps vs Tanenglians raffled off
MANILA, Philippines – The Quezon City regional trial court (RTC) has raffled off the seven counts of child abuse against businessman Mariano Tanenglian and his family in connection with the alleged maltreatment of one of their underage housemaids.
The case, which went to Quezon City RTC Branch 94 Judge Roslyn Rabara-Tria, stemmed from a complaint filed by Aljane Bacanto, a former housemaid of the Tanenglians.
Bacanto alleged that Tanenglian; his wife, Aleta; and children Fayette and Maximillian abused her.
The Tanenglians have filed a motion to suspend the proceedings, according to the court calendar of cases.
Bacanto’s case is second to be filed against the Tanenglians after the case of another former helper, Mary Jane Sollano, was assigned to Branch 102 Judge Lourdes Giron.
Bacanto claimed she was 16 when she was first hired – with a monthly salary of P2,000 – in May 2006. She said she was allegedly maltreated by the family and was finally allowed to go home in January 2009 but without a salary.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) Task Force on Women and Children Protection earlier found probable cause against the Tanenglians and filed the child abuse case in court.
The DOJ recommended P80,000 bail for each count of child abuse as well as the filing of charges serious illegal detention and trafficking, which are non-bailable offenses.
Tanenglian’s lawyer, Raymund Quiroz, said they have asked the court to hold the issuance of the warrant of arrest on grounds that their motion for reconsideration is pending with the DOJ.
With the pending motion, the case should be in the preliminary investigation stage, not raffled off to a court, he added.
Quiroz said they pointed out in the motion for reconsideration the “inconsistencies” in the testimonies of the two housemaids. These inconsistent statements are the sole basis of the case against his clients, he added.
Source:
Reinir Padua
The Philippine Star
February 06, 2010
Retrieved from
http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=547067
Tycoon’s brother, kin face more child abuse charges
MANILA, Philippines–Charges of child abuse were formally filed anew against the family of the brother of tycoon Lucio Tan in a Quezon City court for allegedly maltreating a 16-year-old housemaid.
Facing criminal charges of child abuse or violation of Republic Act 7610 is businessman Mariano Tanenglian, his wife Aleta and children Fayette and Maximillian.
The seven counts of child abuse were formally filed last week in the Quezon City Regional Trial Court and were raffled off to Branch 94, presided by Judge Roslyn Rabara-Tria.
Tria’s sala is a family court, thus parties other than the complainant and the accused are not allowed to inquire about the case.
A check with the court calendar of cases yesterday, however, revealed that the Tanenglians filed a motion to suspend the proceedings.
The seven counts, accompanied by a motion for consolidation, were based on a complaint by Aljane Bacanto, a former housemaid of the Tanenglians.
This is the second case to be filed against the Tanenglians; a the first case, based on a complaint by Mary Jane Sollano, has been assigned to Branch 102 under Judge Lourdes Giron.
Bacanto alleged that she was 16 years old when she was hired in 2006 with a monthly salary of P2,000.
The housemaid claimed that she was maltreated and made to work long hours. She added that she was sometimes deprived of food and was forced to eat dog food to survive.
In January 2009, Bacanto claimed she was allowed to go home after working for the family for two years and seven months, allegedly without a salary.
The Department of Justice’s Task Force on Women and Children Protection, in a resolution, found probable cause against the Tanenglians and filed the case in court.
In its resolution, the DOJ said there was probable cause to indict the Tanenglians based on Bacanto’s claims.
The family claimed Bacanto’s allegations were doubtful as these were general statements and not definite as to when the acts were supposedly committed.
Source:
Julie M. Aurelio
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 23:41:00 02/05/2010
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/metro/view/20100205-251541/Tycoons-brother-kin-face-more-child-abuse-charges
Hold order sought against Tanenglian
THE PROSECUTION has asked a Quezon City court to issue a hold order against the estranged brother of business tycoon Lucio Tan and his family in connection with the criminal charges filed against them.
Mariano Tanenglian, his wife Aleta, and children Fayette and Maximillian are facing charges of serious illegal detention and child abuse for allegedly hiring one of his housemaids when she was still a minor. They are also accused of mistreating her and keeping her prisoner in the house, which she was not allowed to leave even once.
The case was raffled off to Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 102 under Presiding Judge Lourdes Giron.
The proceedings at the family court are confidential, but a notce posted at the court indicated that the prosecution had asked that the accused not be allowed to leave the country.
The Tanenglians are represented by Jay Alberto Flaminiano, son of Jose Flaminiano. The elder Flaminiano was among the top lawyers who defended President Joseph Estrada during his impeachment trial at the Senate and in his plunder case before the Sandiganbayan.
Assistant City Prosecutor Pedro Tresvalles is leading the prosecution panel, assisted by private prosecutor Al Parreno, the counsel for the housemaid.
Source:
Roy Pelovello
Manila Standard Today
January 30-31, 2010
Retrieved from
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/insideNews.htm?f=2010/january/30/news8.isx&d=2010/january/30
Court asked to bar brod of Lucio Tan from leaving country
MANILA, Philippines—Prosecutors have asked a Quezon City court to bar the estranged brother of tycoon Lucio Tan from leaving the country while he and his family is facing trial for allegedly maltreating an underage maid.
In a two-page pleading, assistant city prosecutor Pedro Tresvalles asked Judge Lourdes Giron to issue a hold departure order against businessman Mariano Tanenglian in relation to the charges filed against him.
Giron, the presiding judge of of Regional Trial Court Branch 102, is hearing the 10 criminal cases against Tanenglian, his wife Aleta, and children Fayette and Maximilian for child abuse and serious illegal detention.
The case, which was based on the complaint of Tanenglian’s former housemaid Mary Jane Sollano, was raffled off to Branch 102, a family court as Sollano was a minor when she was first hired.
Branch 102, as a family court, disallows parties other than the complainant and the accused from inquiring about the case.
Tresvalles, in his motion for the issuance of a hold departure order, asked the court to direct immigration authorities to prevent any of the Tanenglians involved in the case from leaving the country.
“It is imperative that a hold departure order be issued directing the commissioner of the Bureau of Immigration to prevent the accused from leaving the country during the pendency of the instant case,” the assistant city prosecutor said.
Tresvalles filed the motion on January 22 or after the ten criminal cases were filed to Giron’s court.
He added that the motion “is not intended to delay the proceedings or infringe upon the accused’s right to travel but for the aforestated reasons.”
The cases against Tanenglian et al were formally filed in court last week after the Department of Justice said there was probable cause to charge them.
The DOJ earlier approved the filing of charges against Tanenglian, particularly for eight counts of child abuse, trafficking of persons and kidnapping and serious illegal detention.
A DOJ task force on women based the case on Sollano’s complaint, as she used to work as a housemaid at the Tanenglian household on Biak-na-Bato St., Quezon City.
She accused her former employers of maltreatment, serious illegal detention, slavery and frustrated homicide.
The DOJ said the Tanenglians allegedly maltreated their housemaid and prevented her from leaving the house since she was employed by the family in 2004 at the age of 13 years old.
The Quezon City Police District, the Commission on Human Rights, and the Department of Social Welfare and Development rescued the 19-year-old housemaid from the Tanenglian household in August 2009.
Source:
Julie M. Aurelio
Philippine Daily Inquirer
January 29, 2010
Retrieved from
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/metro/view/20100129-250152/Court_asked_to_bar_brod_of_Lucio_Tan_from_leaving_country
Tan brother, family face charges in Quezon City court
Mariano Tanenglian is facing serious illegal detention and child abuse charges for allegedly hiring one of his housemaids when she was still a minor.
Also included in the charges were his wife Aleta, and children Fayette and Maximillian.
The cases filed in the Quezon City Regional Trial Court, accompanied with a motion for consolidation, were raffled off to Regional Trial Court Branch 102 presided by Judge Lourdes Giron.
Branch 102, however, is a family court, thus the parties-other than the complainant and the accused are not allowed to inquire about the case, INQUIRER learned.
Another case against Tanenglian filed by justice department has yet to be filed as personnel of the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office said the criminal information had not yet been signed.
The Department of Justice earlier approved the filing of charges against Tanenglian, particularly for eight counts of persons and kidnapping and serious illegal detention.
A DOJ task force on women based the case on a complaint filed by Mary Jane Sollano, a housemaid formerly working at the Tanenglian household on Biak na Bato Street in Quezon City.
The housemaid had accused her former employers of maltreatment, serious illegal detention, slavery and frustrated homicide.
In a resolution last week, the DOJ found that the Tanenglians allegedly maltreated their housemaid and prevented her from leaving the house after she was employed by the family in 2004 at the age of 13.
The Tanenglians were charged in court this week with eight counts of violation of Republic Act 7610 or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act based on Sollano’s claim that she was physically maltreated and not allowed to communicate with her family.
The DOJ also charged the family with trafficking of persons and serious illegal detention of keeping Sollano in their home against her will, and for allegedly forcing her into working for her family.
The Quezon City Police District, Commission on Human Rights, and the Department of Social Welfare and Development rescued the housemaid from the Tanenglian household in August 2009.
Julie M. Aurelio
Philippine Daily Inquirer
A20
January 23, 2010
Another case lodged vs Tanenglian
In a 10-page resolution approved by chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuno, the DOJ said it has found probable cause in the complaint of 19-year-old Aljane Bacanto against Tanenglian, his wife Aleta and children Maximillian and Fayette and approved the filing in court of charges of kidnapping, serious illegal detention, violation of (R.A 9201) Anti-Trafficking in Persons Acts and nine counts of child abuse or violation of R.A 7610 (Special Protection of Children Against Abuse Exploitation and Dis-crimination Act) against them.
Preliminary investigation of the department’s Task Force on Women and Children Protection gave weight to the testimony of complainant Bacanto in approving the child abuse charges against the Tanenglians.
The DOJ has found that Bacanto was only 16 years old when employed by the Tanenglians and then suffered “cruelty, physical abuse from the hands of respondents and had been subjected to conditions prejudicial to her normal development as a child” during her employment from May 2006 up to Jan. last year.
In her complaint filed at the DOJ on Sept. 8 last year, Bacanto recounted her ordeal at the residence of the Tanenglians in Barangay Siena in Quezon City. She said she was not allowed to go out- not even once- during her stay in the house of respondents. Bacanto alleged that she was not allowed to call anybody outside the house. She said she was only allowed to write letters to her family in Tacloban, but upon dictation of Fayette who told her never to tell her parents of her never to tell her parents of her situation. She said her former employers made her” a slave without salary and enough food”.
She revealed that she was only given food whenever her employers were satisfied with her job. She said the refrigerators in the house were padlocked and that there were many instances when she was not able to eat for three consecutive days.
Deprivation
This deprivation of food prompted the maids to try to steal food. But she said they were caught stealing several times and were harshly punished by their bosses. She said she was mauled several times by Aleta, Fayette and Maximillian. She said she was even forced to eat dog food just to survive.
Submitted with the complaint were affidavits of representatives of police, Commission on Human Rights and Department Social Welfare and Development and other persons present during the rescue of the housemaid. The DOJ said it has also found merit in the human trafficking charges, citing the existence of an important aspect of the crime slavery.
“(Bacanto’s) employment was with the intention to enslave and to extract force labor service from the complainant. These intentions are inferred from the acts of respondents when they, in fact, detained complainant from the time she was employed and subjected her to incredibly long hours of work for two years and seven months without salary and under constant conditions of cruelty, maltreatment and threat,” the resolution stated.
Kidnapping, serious illegal detention
The DOJ added that all elements of kidnapping and serious illegal detention especially illegal deprivation of liberty by private individual for over five days- are present in the case of Bacanto.
“Respondents who are private individuals illegally deprived complainant of her liberty by not allowing her to leave their premises from the time of her employment on May 2006 p to January 2009 coupled with threat that if she made an attempt to leave, something of great harm will happen to her. This detention, needless to state, is a deprivation of complainant’s liberty” it explained.
However, the DOJ junked he charges of frustrated homicide against the Tanenglians. The camp of Tanenglian has already downplayed the allegations of the housemaid as “part of a bigger picture.”
Tanenglian’s lawyer, Raymund Quiroz has questioned Bacanto’s testimony: “If the maid (Bacanto) was able to go home to her province last February (last year) then how can she claim that she was being detained? And how come this story is only surfacing now?”
“As we all know somebody is trying to stop our client from testifying at the Sandiganbayan,” he added, apparently referring to the case against Tan where Tanenglian is reported planning to testify for the prosecution.
Still, Quiroz said they would answer all the charges once they receive a copy of the complaint.
Source:
The Philippine Star (Page 18)
January 22, 2010
Tycoon’s brother, family face charges in Quezon City court
MANILA, Philippines–Charges have been filed in a Quezon City court against the brother of tycoon Lucio Tan for allegedly maltreating one of the housemaids under his employ.
Mariano Tanenglian is facing serious illegal detention and child abuse charges for allegedly hiring one of his housemaids when she was still a minor.
Also included in the charges were his wife Aleta, and children Fayette and Maximilian.
The cases filed in the Quezon City Regional Trial Court, accompanied with a motion for consolidation, were raffled off to Regional Trial Court Branch 102 presided by Judge Lourdes Giron.
Branch 102, however, is a family court, thus the parties—other than the complainant and the accused—
are not allowed to inquire about the case, Inquirer learned.
Another case against Tanenglian filed by justice department has yet to be filed as personnel of the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office said the criminal information had not yet been signed.
The Department of Justice earlier approved the filing of charges against Tanenglian, particularly for eight counts of child abuse, trafficking of persons and kidnapping and serious illegal detention.
A DOJ task force on women based the case on a complaint filed by Mary Jane Sollano, a housemaid formerly working at the Tanenglian household on Biak na Bato Street in Quezon City.
The housemaid had accused her former employers of maltreatment, serious illegal detention, slavery and frustrated homicide.
In a resolution last week, the DOJ found that the Tanenglians allegedly maltreated their housemaid and prevented her from leaving the house after she was employed by the family in 2004 at the age of 13.
The Tanenglians were charged in court this week with eight counts of violation of Republic Act 7610 or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act based on Sollano’s claim that she was physically maltreated and not allowed to communicate with her family.
The DOJ also charged the family with trafficking of persons and serious illegal detention for keeping Sollano in their home against her will, and for allegedly forcing her into working for the family.
The Quezon City Police District, Commission on Human Rights, and the Department of Social Welfare and Development rescued the housemaid from the Tanenglian household in August 2009.
Source
Julie M. Aurelio
Philippine Daily Inquirer
January 22, 2010
Retrieved from
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/metro/view/20100122-248907/Tycoons-brother-family-face-charges-in-Quezon-City-court
DoJ okays more raps vs billionaire
Mariano Tanenglian, his wife Aleta, and children Maximilian and Fayette, all of Barangay Siena, Quezon City, were charged with nine counts of violation of the Anti Child Abuse Law and Anti-Trafficking of Persons, kidnapping and serious illegal detention before a QC court.
The charges stemmed from the complaint of Aljane Bacanto who claimed the family detained, abused amd maltreated her while working at their household for three years.
This was the seond time the Tanenglian family was charged by the DoJ before a Quezon City court.
Last Jan. 14, the DoJ filed similar charges against the Tanenglians based on the complaint of another housemaid, Mary Jane Sollano 19.
Hector Lawas
People’s Journal, Page 10
January 21, 2010
Isa pang criminal complaint sa negosyante, pinaboran ng DOJ
Sa 10 pahinang resolusyon na inaprubahan ni Chief Stae Prosecutor Jovencio Zuno, sinabi ng DOJ na may probable cause upang ihabla si Tanenglian, may bahay nitong si Aleta at mga anak na sina Maximillian at Fayette sa kasong kidnapping, serious illegal detention, violation of R.A.9208 (Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act) at nine counts ng child abuse o paglabag sa R.A 7610 (Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act).
Sa pag-establisa ng paglabag sa child abuse law, binigyang bigat ng investigating fiscals mula sa Force on Women and Children Protection ng departamento ang testimonya ng complainant na si Aljane Bacanto na dumanas umano siya sa kalupitan, abusing pisikal “and had been subjected to conditions prejudicial to her normal development as a child” nang magsimula umano siyang magtrabaho sa bahay ng Tanenglians” noong Mayo 2006, 16-anyos palang siya, hanggang Enero noong nakaraang taon.
Sa aspeto ng human trafficking, nakakita umano ang DOJ ng merito sa alegasyong slavery, na mahalagang elemento umano ng kaso.
Samantala, ibinasura naman ng DOJ ang reklamong frustrated homicide laban sa mga ito.
Abante Tonight, Pahina 3
Enero 21,2010
DOJ files more raps vs Tanenglians
Sued for nine counts of violation of Republic Act 7610 (the Anti Child Abuse Law), violation of Republic Act 9208 (Anti-Trafficking of Persons), kidnapping, and serious illegal detention were Mariano Tanenglian, his wife Aleta, and children Maximillian and Fayette.
This was the second time the Tanenglian family was issued by the DOJ before the courts. Last Jan. 14, the DOJ filed similar charges against them before the QCRTC on the complaint of another housemaid, Mary Jane Sollano, 19.
“In this case, all the elements of the afore-mentioned crimes are present. Respondents who are private individuals illegally deprived complainant of her liberty ny not allowing her to leave their premises from the time of her employment… with threat if she made an attempt to leave, something of great harm will happen to her. This detention, needless to state, is deprivation of th complainant’s liberty,” Assistant Prosecution Attorney II Xerxes Garcia said in his resolution.
The case stemmed from the complaint of Aljane Bacanto who claimed that her ordeal started last May 2006 in the residence of the Tanenglians at Brgy. Siena, Quezon City.
Hector Lawas
People’s Tonight, Page 14
January 21,2010
