MANILA – Former Negros Oriental 3rd District congressman Arnolfo Teves Jr. was arrested by immigration officials in Timor-Leste on Tuesday evening, according to his son Axl.
In a social media post, Axl claimed there was no warrant or any other document shown during the arrest of his father, who was placed under the custody of Timor-Leste immigration police.
“We are held against our will. They are not letting me go,” Teves said in a video posted by Axl on Facebook.
Teves’ legal counsel Atty. Ferdinand Topacio, meanwhile, said in a separate interview that his client was taken from his residence in Dili together with his Timor Leste counsel, Dr. Joao Serra, by immigration police.
“At around 8 p.m. yesterday (Dili time), our client, Rep. Armolfo Teves, and the lawyer were manhandled by the police,” Topacio said. “They have since been detained in the compound of the Ministry of the Interior.”
“No warrant or any written authority was shown to Mr. Teves and Dr. Serra as to the cause of detention,” he added.
Teves is accused of allegedly masterminding the killing of the late Negros Oriental governor Roel Degamo and nine others on March 4, 2023 at the Degamo residence in Pamplona, Negros Oriental.
The Department of Justice, in a statement, said the government “notes” recent developments regarding Teves and they are ready to bring him home to face the charges against him.
“While we welcome the recent pronouncements from Timor-Leste indicating a renewed position that Mr. Teves should not remain in their territory, we await their action — whether he would simply be deported for being an undocumented foreigner or extradited forthwith pursuant to our pending application,” the DOJ said.
“We emphasize that the Philippine government has not been furnished with any legal or official document on the matter,” it added.
Teves and several others have also been charged over the killings of three individuals in Negros Oriental in 2019. He was designated as a terrorist by the Anti-Terrorism Council.
Teves was expelled by the House of Representatives in August last year for disorderly conduct and continued absence./PN
