BATANGAS CITY, Philippines  – A municipal trial court has (MTC) found Batangas Vice-Governor Mark Leviste guilty beyond reasonable doubt of being the mastermind in the planting of a dummy bomb at the Batangas Capitol compound four years ago.
 
In a 12-page decision by Judge Eleuterio Bathan of Branch 2, Fourth Judicial Region MTC, Leviste was meted 1-year imprisonment and ordered to pay P1,000.00 for violation of Article 143 and 153 of the Revised Penal Code for public disturbance that prevents meetings or assemblies.
 
Last June 8, 2006, panic erupted at the Batangas Provincial Capitol due to a bomb threat. The incident halted an on-going session of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) or provincial board, and forced the evacuation of the capitol’s employees.
 
The Philippine National Police (PNP) and the bomb disposal unit of the Philippine Air Force, who responded to the incident, recovered a dummy bomb in a trash can about 15 meters away from the SP’s session hall.
 
In the course of the investigations, authorities arrested Leviste’s personal driver Edward Ronquillo after gathering evidence pointing to him as the one who planted the dummy bomb.
 
Ronquillo, however, turned state witness and accused Leviste of being the mastermind of the bomb hoax.
 
In his sworn statement, Ronquillo said Leviste handed him a green bottle of wine and told him to fill it with sand and a wick (mitsa) and have it wrapped with brown packaging tape while they were at the vice governor’s house in Barangay Inosluban in Lipa City.
 
Ronquillo said he was then instructed by Leviste to plant the dummy bomb at the bench outside the door of the office of provincial board member Lianda Bolilia.
 
Ronquillo narrated that he even asked Leviste why they had to plant a bomb at Bolilia’s door. 

“Ang sagot niya (Leviste) sa akin ay malaki daw po ang naging galit niya doon sa ginawang pagsasampa ni Bokal [board member] Bolilia sa Ethics Committee,” said Ronquillo.
 
Prior to the incident, Bolilia filed a complaint against Leviste before the Ethics Committee alleging that the vice governor erased the name of the lady lawmaker in an ordinance she authored.
 
Ronquillo likewise testified that Leviste’s purpose in planting the fake bomb was to create a commotion that would suspend the then on-going ethics committee hearing and to send the board members back to their respective offices.
 
Leviste denied the allegations.
 
“I still respect the court’s decision, pilit natin inuunawaan ang kanilang desisyon. I’m calm dahil alam kong wala naman tayong ginawang masama, hindi po tayo guilty at sinusunod natin ang batas” Leviste said.
 
“Alam ng Panginoon na wala tayong ginawang masama tulad ng nabanggit ng desisyon ng korte. Ganoon pa man, patuloy pa rin kaming magdadasal at gagalangin ang desisyon ng korte” Leviste added.
 
Leviste’s counsel, Atty. Socrates Hermoso, in an interview, said: “We have 15 days to file an appeal and definitely we will file an appeal.”
 
Asked for his comment on the MTC decision, Hermoso said:  “We have a very strong chance that this case would be reversed by the Regional Trial Court because we believe that the prosecution failed to present enough evidence to convict the accused.”
 
Leviste has been granted provisional liberty after posting bail.
 
A week before the June 8 bomb threat, then Batangas Governor Armando Sanchez was critically wounded when his Hummer vehicle was bombed inside the Batangas Capitol compound that killed two of his bodyguards.