SC reinstates arrest warrant vs World Balance heir in ₱1.88-B shabu case

The Supreme Court has reinstated the arrest warrant against businessman Bernard Lu Chong in connection with the alleged importation of ₱1.88 billion worth of shabu through a cargo company where he had been identified as general manager.

In a decision penned by Associate Justice Jhosep Lopez, the Court’s Second Division reversed the Court of Appeals and upheld the Manila Regional Trial Court’s finding of probable cause against Chong.

The SC ordered Manila RTC Branch 53 to resume proceedings and resolve the criminal case “with utmost dispatch.”

Chong was among those charged following the seizure of 276,344.82 grams of methamphetamine hydrochloride at the Manila International Container Port.

The case stemmed from a shipment linked to Fortuneyield Cargo Services Corp., which was listed as a consignee in shipping documents.

Court records showed that a Bureau of Customs Client Profile Registration Form identified Chong as Fortuneyield’s general manager responsible for the company’s “overall operation.” Government accreditation records also listed him as the company’s president and general manager.

Chong argued that he and other incorporators had already transferred their shares and were no longer connected with the company by the time the shipment was seized.

The SC, however, said Chong had not materially disputed that he remained Fortuneyield’s general manager at the time relevant to the shipment and had not shown that the company’s responsible officers had been formally updated.

“The RTC, therefore, had sufficient reason to accord weight to the Client Profile Registration Form, which identified respondent as the general manager whose area of responsibility was the ‘overall operation’ of the company,” the Court said.

The high court consequently reversed the Court of Appeals’ 13 April 2023 decision and 5 December 2024 resolution, while sustaining the Manila RTC orders that found probable cause and refused to quash Chong’s arrest warrant.

The case was remanded to the trial court for further proceedings.