The Cebu City Regional Trial Court yesterday granted the request of the camp of former Dapitan City mayor Dominador Jalosjos to be placed under hospital arrest as he serves his sentence in a 1969 highway robbery case.
Executive Judge Soliver Peras was convinced by the testimony of Dr. Peter Mancao who said that Jalosjos has a “chronic wound” in his heart which needs to be addressed to save the latter’s life.
“Since his (Jalosjos) present condition may allegedly cause infection that will lead to his untimely death, the court orders his continued confinement at Cebu Doctors’ Hospital until the wound will heal,” said Peras in an order he issued in open court yesterday.
The confinement of Jalosjos in the hospital will be counted against his one year and six months jail term.
He mandated Mancao to submit a weekly report to the court regarding Jalosjos’ health condition.
NOWHERE TO GO. An undated photo showing former Dapitan City mayor Dominador Jalosjos, with his left foot shackled to his hospital bed, talking to his lawyer Inocencio Dela Serna while two jail guards stand by. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)
Jalosjos, elder brother of convicted rapist and former Zamboanga del Norte congressman Romeo Jalosjos, surrendered to the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) last Jan. 23 after an arrest warrant was released by the court for a robbery conviction in 1970 that he never served. He was meted a jail term of one year and six months.
But considering his health condition, the 71-year-old Jalosjos chose to be confined in Cebu Doctors’ Hospital.
His left ankle was cuffed to his hospital bed in compliance with standard procedure of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and to show that he is not enjoying special treatment, said Jalosjos’ lawyer Inocencio dela Cerna.
Dela Cerna presented Mancao to the court to prove that Jalosjos needs to remain in the hospital.
Upon viewing the photos of Jalosjos in his hospital bed, Peras asked the BJMP to file a written explanation why Jalosjos had to be shackled.
HEART WOUND
In his testimony, Mancao said Jalosjos has an “open wound in his sternum,” a compound ventral bone or cartilage covering the heart.
Mancao said the wound did not heal after Jalosjos underwent a triple bypass in 2011 and 2012.
“There’s an unhealed wound near his heart. Right now, we’re trying to control the infection in the wound. If we would not apply any medical intervention, it would lead to an infection,” he explained.
Mancao, who claims to have conducted over a thousand heart surgeries since he began his practice as a cardiac surgeon in 1986, said they intend to put a prosthetic in Jalosjos’ chest.
He said the prosthetic is meant to allow the wound to heal.
“It will be a very crucial 5-8 hours of operation and thus he needs to remain in the hospital,” Mancao said.
After the surgery, Mancao said Jalosjos will undergo a cardiac program to make sure the infection won’t recur.
“I am advising against putting him in jail considering his condition. I can’t give a definite time as to when he will be discharged from the hospital,” the doctor said.
STABLE CONDITION
When asked by Assistant City Prosecutor Raul Cristoria as to the present condition of Jalosjos, Mancao answered “stable.”
Mancao said Jalosjos is confined in a regular room set up like an Intensive Care Unit. The former mayor is hooked up to a cardiac monitor.
“The ICU is more prone to infection for open-wound patients,” Mancao said.
Jalosjos underwent a heart bypass at St. Luke’s Medical Center in August 2011. After a successful surgery, he was discharged from the hospital but was again confined a month later since the wound never healed.
Jalosjos underwent two more surgeries in Sept. 2011 and July 2011. Last week, he decided to seek medical treatment at Cebu Doctors’ Hospital.
Jalosjos, the owner of Dakak Beach Resort in Dapitan City and city mayor from 2004 to 2012 was found guilty by the then Court of First Instance (now RTC) in relation to his involvement in a highway robbery in Cebu City involving P700 in 1969.
He was meted the penalty of one year and six months imprisonment and was prohibited from holding public office.
To avoid incarceration, Jalosjos filed a petition for probation, a remedy granted by law to persons convicted of an offense that carries the penalty of less than six years of imprisonment.
He was eventually granted probation by the court. Jalosjos however failed to comply with the requirement to regularly report to a probation officer.
Hence, the court canceled his probation and ordered his arrest.
He ran for governor of Zamboanga del Norte in 2013 but was disqualified by the Commission on Election because of his robbery conviction which became final and executory in 2012.
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