A Quezon City prosecutor is in hot water over criminal charges  filed by his wife who apparently had a video evidence of the wayward Lothario’s dalliances with another woman.
Justice Secretary Leila de Lima confirmed the local fiscal she did not name was charged with grave coercion, grave threats and violation of Republic Act 9262 (Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act) by his wife before the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office.
The local prosecutor’s office refused to inhibit from investigating the charges, saying a separate disbarment complaint was filed against the fiscal before the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.
“The central issue is the merit and fitness of a person to function as a public prosecutor. That means living up to the highest standards of integrity,” the DoJ chief said.
De Lima confirmed the fiscal filed counter-charges for violation of Republic Act 9995 (Anti-Photo and Video Voyeurism Act) against his wife for allegedly posting in the Internet the sex video she discovered from his laptop.
“The sex video is a collateral issue that demonstrates the emergence of the use and abuse of technology,” she stressed.
De Lima said she was told the video was taken when the prosecutor was still with the Public Attorney’s Office and prior to his appointment as assistant city prosecutor just last October.
When sought for comment, Prosecutor General Claro Arellano agreed with De Lima that fiscals should preserve their high standard of integrity.
“A prosecutor should be an example of morality,” he told reporters in an interview.
“If we find probable cause on the allegation against our prosecutor, we have no choice but to file the case (in court). As always, we evaluate cases based on merits. Not because the respondent is a prosecutor, he will be spared,” the DoJ official stressed.
The fiscal involved has taken a leave of absence, according to Arellano. The woman in the video  — also not identified by DoJ officials — was supposedly also a lawyer who even placed in the Top 10 of the 2008 Bar exams.