Ongpin denies owning, possessing drugs; asks court to dismiss case
MANILA — The scion of one of the country’s richest tycoons has denied either owning or possessing the pouch where cocaine was recovered, and instead asked a La Union court to dismiss the drugs case against him.
“[T]he DOJ had no evidence that the accused had knowledge of the existence of the presence of the pouch and bag where the Subject Drugs were found. What is clear from the evidence is that accused in his Supplemental Counter Affidavit dated 7 October 2021 categorically stated that [T]he pouch and bag depicted in Annex ‘D’ do not belong to me,” they added.
The case was transferred to DOJ Manila where prosecutors eventually indicted him for the non-bailable criminal case of possession of illegal drugs. “The fact [is] that respondent Julian Roberto S. Ongpin was in constructive possession of an item identified as a prohibited drug and he was not authorized by law to possess it and that he freely, knowingly and consciously possessed the said drugs,” prosecutors said in a resolution never made public but which Ongpin’s lawyers heavily-quoted.
Under section 21 of the law, law enforcers are required to follow a certain procedure to ensure the integrity of the illegal drugs seized. An “unbroken” chain of custody of illegal drugs is needed to secure a conviction. Arguing that DOJ prosecutors should not have immediately filed the drugs case, Ongpin’s lawyers urged the court to require the DOJ to submit additional evidence within 5 days to establish probable cause.
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