Teves seeks arraignment delay over health woes

Expelled Negros Oriental Congressman Arnolfo “Arnie” Teves Jr. has requested the postponement of his scheduled arraignment and pre-trial for a separate murder case set for Tuesday, 30 June 2025, before the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 12.

Teves’s legal team cited his current health condition as the primary reason for the deferment.

In a statement released Sunday night, his lawyer Atty. Ferdinand Topacio said that while Teves is expected to be discharged from the hospital on Monday or Tuesday morning at the latest, he might not yet be "fit enough to attend personally, as required by the presiding judge."

In addition to murder, Teves is also facing charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives before the same court.

The former lawmaker is being linked as the alleged mastermind in the assassination of Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo and several others. He has consistently denied any involvement in the killings.

Teves has been charged in connection with the deaths of Degamo and nine others.