24 hours after arrival from US, ex-PCSO head Royina Garma leaves PH for Malaysia -- BI
Retired police colonel and former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) general manager Royina M. Garma left the country for Malaysia last Sunday night, Sept. 7, a day after she arrived from the United States last Saturday night, Sept. 6.
“Garma left as a tourist for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3,” the Bureau of Immigration (BI) said in a statement.
It said that Garma is a subject of an immigration lookout bulletin order (ILBO) for the criminal charges filed against her in 2016 and 2020.
But, the BI said, immigration officers at the airport could not stop Garma from leaving the country because there is no hold departure order (HDO) against her.
It explained that an ILBO issued by the Department of Justice (DOJ) merely monitors the movement of a person, and only an HDO issued by the court can stop a person from leaving the country.
It also said it followed the procedures and reported Garma’s departure to the DOJ.
Garma left the Philippines in November 2024 but was detained in the US due to a cancelled visa. She was deported last week and arrived in the Philippines last Saturday night, Sept. 6.
She has been charged before the DOJ with murder and frustrated murder in the 2020 killing of PCSO board secretary and retired police general Wesley Barayuga.Barayuga and for the injuries sustained by the victim's driver Jun Gunao.
She was also charged in the August 2016 killings of three Chinese detainees at the Davao Prison and Penal Farm (DPPF).
During congressional hearings last year, Garma testified that an award system was implemented for policemen who killed drug suspects during the drug war of former president Rodrigo R. Duterte.
She was ordered detained by the Quad Com of the House of Representatives after being cited in contempt but was later released. She then fled to the US.