Quad Comm frees Garma, Leonardo; holds onto Cassandra Ong

RG Cruz

ABS-CBN News

<p><span data-teams="true" id="isPasted"><span dir="ltr"></span></span>MANILA -- Former Police Colonels Royina Garma and Edilberto Leonardo have been released from the custody of the House of Representatives, the <span id="isPasted" style="color:rgb(65, 65, 65);letter-spacing:normal;orphans:2;text-align:left;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;widows:2;word-spacing:0px;-webkit-text-stroke-width:0px;white-space:normal;background-color:rgb(255, 255, 255);text-decoration-thickness:initial;text-decoration-style:initial;text-decoration-color:initial;display:inline !important;float:none">Quad Committee</span> said Friday. </p><p>&quot;Of course, they&#x27;re both okay. They have already been released from their detention,&quot; <span id="isPasted" style="color:var(--IXoxUe);letter-spacing:normal;orphans:2;text-align:left;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;widows:2;word-spacing:0px;-webkit-text-stroke-width:0px;white-space:normal;background-color:rgb(255, 255, 255);text-decoration-thickness:initial;text-decoration-style:initial;text-decoration-color:initial"> </span><span><em></em>Quad Committee Lead Co-Chair Rep. Robert Ace <em></em>Barbers said. </span> </p><p>&quot;In fact, nandun nga sila no&#x27;ng hearing no&#x27;ng kahapon, earlier nandoon sila at no&#x27;ng medyo mahaba na at di na matatalakay yung issue tungkol sa kanila ay in-excuse naman po muna namin sila. And they promised that they will attend doon sa susunod pa mga pagdinig natin kapag sila&#x27;y pinatawag,&quot; he told reporters. <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/9/27/another-detainee-napolcom-commissioner-cited-in-contempt-by-house-quad-comm-1238"></a></p><div><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/9/27/another-detainee-napolcom-commissioner-cited-in-contempt-by-house-quad-comm-1238">Another detainee: Napolcom commissioner cited in contempt by House quad-comm for &#x27;lying&#x27;</a></div><p>He also mentioned that they were released shortly before the resumption of the session. </p><p>&quot;Noong bago mag-resume yata eh. I think a day before or two days before mag-resume. I&#x27;ll check the records kung kailan. I have no specific date with me right now,&quot; Barbers said.</p><p>The two did not appear in the last 2 hearings of the panel but that did not mean their testimonies were enough, Barbers said. He said the megapanel was merely trying to do a better job of scheduling the testimonies because of the number of witnesses.</p><p>&quot;Dahil nga sa dami ng resource persons na pinapatawag natin kapag may mga hearing, tinatantsa na lang namin kung sino ba yung makakausap, sino ba yung dapat nandoon. At &#x27;yung hindi naman po maitatanong o matatanong sa araw na &#x27;yun, in-excuse naman din namin nang sa ganun na hindi naman po masayang yung kanilang mga oras sa kakahintay doon sa quad comm,&quot; Barbers said.</p><p>In the meantime, the quad comm is <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/9/20/cassandra-ong-cited-in-contempt-anew-ordered-detained-for-30-days-938">holding on to Cassandra Ong.</a></p><p>&quot;Si Cassandra Ong kasi, we cited her in contempt and we even extended &#x27;yung kanyang contempt order kasi nga hanggang ngayon, hindi pa siya nakakapag-submit ng mga dokumentong hinihingi namin sa kanya tungkol sa kaniyang pagkaka-involve o pagkakaugnay doon sa Lucky South 99. So hanggang &#x27;di niya sina-submit yan eh mapipilitan po ang <span id="isPasted" style="color:rgb(65, 65, 65);letter-spacing:normal;orphans:2;text-align:left;text-indent:0px;text-transform:none;widows:2;word-spacing:0px;-webkit-text-stroke-width:0px;white-space:normal;background-color:rgb(255, 255, 255);text-decoration-thickness:initial;text-decoration-style:initial;text-decoration-color:initial;display:inline !important;float:none">quad comm</span> ay extend &#x27;yung kaniyang contempt dyan sa correctional, women&#x27;s correctional,&quot; Barbers said.</p><p>&quot;I have no idea kung nabawi niya na &#x27;yung kanyang cellphone. Kasi ang hinihingi namin hindi &#x27;yung cellphone niya. Hindi naman po kami naniniwala na lahat ng mga importanteng bagay sa buhay niya o lahat ng importanteng dokumento na dapat niyang itago ay nakatago sa kanyang cellphone. I&#x27;m sure marami pong pinagtataguang mga dokumento &#x27;yan,&quot; he continued.</p><p>Barbers left to Congressmen Dan Fernandez and Bienvenido Abante the matter of <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/11/7/quad-comm-denies-coercion-in-ejk-probe-co-chairpersons-ready-to-inhibit-1343">inhibiting from the proceedings</a> involving Colonel Hector Grijaldo, who had claimed the two tried to get him to confirm Garma&#x27;s claims about the alleged drug war rewards system.</p><p>&quot;Well yung pag-iinhibit ni Cong. Dan at saka ni Cong. Benny -- kanilang decision &#x27;yun and in fact we welcome that dahil nga po ayaw nilang magkaroon ng kulay na kung saan eh gagamitin &#x27;yung kanilang pagiging chairman sa pagtatanong dito nsa susunod na pagdalo ni Col. Grijaldo,&quot; he said.</p><p>&quot;Gusto lamang malinawan na gaya ng lagi namin sinasabi, mula no&#x27;ng nangyari itong kanyang pagharap sa Senado na parang pinalalabas niya na mayroong pagpilit sa kanya na siya ay pumirma o tumistigo sa isang bagay, lumalabas naman po na kasinungalingan ngayon lahat. Whatever actions, Congressman Dan Fernandez and Benny Abante will take, nasa kanila na po &#x27;yun,&quot; Barbers said.</p><div><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/11/7/quad-comm-denies-coercion-in-ejk-probe-co-chairpersons-ready-to-inhibit-1343">Quad comm denies coercion in EJK probe; co-chairpersons ready to inhibit</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>SUMMON DUTERTE?</strong></div><div><strong> </strong></div><p>The House Quad Committee is investigating the onlinne gambling sector and the alleged extrajudicial killings in former President Rodrigo Duterte administration war on drugs.</p><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Barbers said he did not believe the panel would issue a subpoena for Duterte should he continue to skip the hearings of the panel.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Barbers was asked about this after members of the panel expressed frustration at Duterte&#x27;s absence at the House even after initially committing to attend.</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">&quot;Kagabi na pag-usapan nga yan na ano ba ang susunod na hakbang. Siguro dapat mag-usap-usap muna kami kung ano bang dapat hakbang,” Barbers said. </span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="color:#000000;background-color:transparent;text-decoration:none;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">“Pero kung babasihan natin yung nangyari in the past hearings na kung saan na hindi po dumalo si Pangulong Duterte, gaya ng lagi naming paulit-ulit na sinasabi, we will extend to him the courtesy that the committee can in deference to him being the former president.&quot;</span></div><div dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><br/></div><p>The megapanel hopes to wrap up its investigations before the year ends, Barbers said.</p><p>&quot;I cannot really honestly say hanggang kailan but I am looking at before the end of the year. But of course it will depend kung ano pa yung ibang issues na maaaring lumabas, maaaring testigong lumabas,” he said.</p><p>“Marami pang nag-e-email sa amin, marami pang nag-ano, yung mga sinasabi naging biktima ng EJK. Marami din nagbigay sa amin ng mga information tungkol naman sa mga droga daw sa loob ng jails natin at drugs sa bureau.” </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEOS:</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1S_Ip88TwF4?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/2NEZQ3QmEWo?&amp;embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fnews.abs-cbn.com%2Fnews%2F2024%2F10%2F14%2Fpalace-accepts-resignation-of-napolcom-exec-tagged-in-drug-war-killings-1205&amp;source_ve_path=MjM4NTE&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Former police officers Royina Garma and Edilberto Leonardo have been released from the custody of the House of Representatives, House QuadCom Chair Robert Ace Barbers told media.</p>

Former police officers Royina Garma and Edilberto Leonardo have been released from the custody of the House of Representatives, House QuadCom Chair Robert Ace Barbers told media.

Quad Comm frees Garma, Leonardo; holds onto Cassandra Ong | ABS-CBN

Entertainment

News

Metro.Style

Sports

More

News

Quad Comm frees Garma, Leonardo; holds onto Cassandra Ong

Quad Comm frees Garma, Leonardo; holds onto Cassandra Ong

RG Cruz,

ABS-CBN News

Published Nov 08, 2024 02:00 PM PHT

|

Updated Nov 08, 2024 02:18 PM PHT

Read More:

ABSNews

House of Representatives

House Quad Comm

Royina Garma

Edilberto Leonardo

Robert Ace Barbers

Cassandra Ong

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Advertise with Us

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.