Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

Edcel Grex Lagman files his Certificate of Candidacy for Albay governor. Jervis Manahan, ABS-CBN News/File

Article (news)

Job Manahan

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1745910307850Screen Shot 2025-04-29 at 3.04.16 PM.png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Edcel Grex Lagman files his Certificate of Candidacy for Albay governor. <em>Jervis Manahan, ABS-CBN News/File</em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — The Ombudsman has found Albay Governor Edcel Greco Alexander “Grex” Lagman guilty of grave misconduct for supposedly receiving money from “jueteng” operators, a document showed.</p><p>A decision dated Jan. 28, 2025 and approved by Ombudsman Officer-in-Charge Dante Vargas on April 10 ordered Lagman to be dismissed from service, along with other accessory penalties. </p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/regions/2024/10/18/albay-governor-confirms-preventive-suspension-order-from-ombudsman-1923">Albay governor confirms preventive suspension order from Ombudsman</a></div><p>Charges for dishonesty and neglect of duty, however, were junked due to insufficiency of evidence. </p><p>The case stemmed from a complaint filed in February 2024 by Alwin Nimo, a self-confessed coordinator for jueteng financiers or “bangkero.” </p><p>“Allegedly, sometime in 2019, respondent sought the complainant&#x27;s help in securing contact with the financier of jueteng operating in their locality... Respondent asked that, in exchange for protection, he would receive his regular payola and that the complainant would act as his conduit or ‘bag man,’” the decision read. </p><p>Lagman, at the time, was Vice Governor of Albay.</p><p>“The protection, as complainant alleged, is the promise that respondent and his colleagues in the Sangguniang Panlalawigan would ‘look the other way and... refrain from using their investigative powers from inquiring into the known proliferation of Jueteng in Albay’,” it added.   </p><p>Lagman allegedly accepted P60,000 as “weekly protection money.” </p><p>Nimo allegedly delivered the payola directly to Lagman or his driver. This happened even if some financiers were replaced, based on the Ombudsman’s decision.</p><p>It added that Lagman received weekly protection money from November 2020 to January 2021. </p><p>“This Office finds that respondent had been animated by a corrupt motive to benefit from illegal gambling. His corrupt actions were willful and done with discernment. Corruption is present when an official uses their position to gain a benefit for themselves or someone else, contrary to the duties or rights of others,” the decision read.</p><p>In October 2024, Lagman was preventively suspended by the Office of the Ombudsman. </p><p>Lagman assumed the position of governor in December 2022 when the Commission on Elections disqualified Noel Rosal for election violations.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO: </strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CYqyERijSLc?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong><br/></div>

<p>The Ombudsman has found Albay Governor Edcel Greco Alexander “Grex” Lagman guilty of grave misconduct for supposedly receiving money from “jueteng” operators, a document showed.</p>

The Ombudsman has found Albay Governor Edcel Greco Alexander “Grex” Lagman guilty of grave misconduct for supposedly receiving money from “jueteng” operators, a document showed.

Ombudsman dismisses Albay Gov. Grex Lagman over jueteng links

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Ombudsman dismisses Albay Gov. Grex Lagman over jueteng links

Job Manahan,

ABS-CBN News

Published April 29, 2025 03:14 PM PHT

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Updated April 29, 2025 04:47 PM PHT

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