The Philippine National Police said Thursday that no order exists sending Sen. Rodante Marcoleta to a detention facility, and that the lawmaker remains at the PNP General Hospital in Camp Crame while doctors continue evaluating his condition.
“As of this date, Senator Marcoleta is still undergoing medical evaluation and treatment at the PNPGH, and there is no other commitment order for him to be placed in a detention facility,” the PNP said in a statement.
What the Sandiganbayan did issue was a commitment order handing the senator over to the custody of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group. That arrangement holds for the length of the trial, or until the anti-graft court rules otherwise.
“The PNP confirms that a commitment order was issued by the Sandiganbayan placing Senator Marcoleta under the custody of the PNP-CIDG pending trial and until further orders from the court,” the police said.
Marcoleta was admitted Monday after he reported chest pain, pain at the nape and elevated blood pressure while officers processed his booking. Police said his readings have swung unevenly since, prompting continued monitoring.
When the senator does leave the hospital, a PNP physician wants him kept away from other detainees. Lt. Col. Benaly Bayani, chief of the hospital’s Internal Medicine Department, cited the 72-year-old’s compromised immune system and a rise in Covid-19 infections.
“We have to consider his age. His immune system is already weaker, so we strongly advise that he remain isolated, especially now that Covid-19 cases are increasing. If it were up to me, I would not recommend placing him with the general jail population,” Bayani said.
No discharge date has been set. Doctors want to review a two-dimensional echocardiogram before clearing him, and the cardiologist who will interpret it visits the hospital as a civilian consultant, leaving the timing uncertain.
“At this point, we cannot say yet. I need to wait for all the test results to make sure nothing will happen to him once he is discharged,” Bayani said.
Tests have found dyslipidemia, a condition of elevated cholesterol that can lead to blocked arteries without treatment. Marcoleta’s chest pains recur intermittently and a recent blood pressure reading came in at 140/90. He is also being treated for mild community-acquired pneumonia, which Bayani said is improving under antibiotics. The senator is not critical, the doctor said, but has been told to stay on bed rest pending further tests.
The Sandiganbayan had earlier instructed police to produce Marcoleta’s medical records along with a report on his booking, seeking an account of why he stayed at the hospital rather than a regular jail. Bayani said the hospital sent an initial medical report to the court and has received no request for an update.
Arresting officers from the CIDG served the warrant on July 6, following an order from the Sandiganbayan Third Division. The plunder case accuses Marcoleta of receiving P75 million in undeclared campaign contributions ahead of the 2025 elections. Former congressman Mike Defensor, Joseph Espiritu and Aristotle Viray were taken into custody as co-accused. Marcoleta has denied the allegations.
