PNS — WITH the death of retired Gen. Angelo Reyes, the burden of proof now lies with his wife and children concerning his alleged criminal liability in the misuse of military funds when he was still Armed Forces chief of staff.
”Technically, retired Gen. Angelo Reyes died with the “presumption of innocence” on his side, because he never went to trial,” Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago said. She noted that during the Senate investigation on the reported corruption in the military, the former Armed Forces chief of staff was a “person-in-interest,” or a “suspect.”
Santiago said that Reyes’ death extinguished both his criminal and civil liabilities, if there were any. “In other words, his criminal liability was totally extinguished, both as to the personal and the pecuniary penalties,” she said.
”However, the Penal Code provides that the obligation to make restoration or reparation for damages devolves upon his heirs.Thus, his wife and children are obliged to restore whatever property may be proved to have been acquired by illegal means,” she said.
”In lieu of the deceased, his wife and their children may be summoned to the Senate hearing to investigate whether they have become liable under the Anti-Graft Act,” the senator said.