Sandigan closes sexual harassment case vs ex-Neda official
The Sandiganbayan has terminated the sexual harassment case against former National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Regional Director Jose Romeo Escandor after he completed four months of community service.
In a resolution dated July 4, the antigraft court’s Third Division ordered the “final discharge” of Escandor and the termination of his case. The court decision also resulted in the lifting of the hold departure order issued against him.
In October 2013, the Sandiganbayan found Escandor guilty beyond reasonable doubt of sexually harassing a female staffer at the Neda regional office in Central Visayas. He was sentenced to a six-month prison term and fined P20,000.
But in January 2024, the antigraft court reconsidered its earlier decision denying the Neda official’s request to render community service instead of spending six months in prison.The Sandiganbayan held a hearing for Escandor’s application two months later and granted his request in an order it released on April 3, 2024.
Conditions
Among the requirements he needed to fulfill were attending a pastoral service, assisting in the implementation of legal service and various economic programs in Barangay Lahug in Cebu City, as well as undergoing exit rehabilitative counseling under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
Escandor’s community service lasted from June 1, 2024 to Oct. 4, 2024 and during this period, he was required to report to supervising probation and parole officer Danna Merisa Ebra twice a month. At the same time, he was barred from committing any crime and associating with persons of questionable character.
At the end of Escandor’s community service, the Sandiganbayan terminated the case against him based on the reports it received from Ebra, the Cebu City DSWD aftercare program, Jail Chief Inspector Merlina Metante and barangay chair Muafia-Empleo.
