News & Archives

 

London & Manila 

 

The case against the Ubando's, Lalaine and Adan, and Josephine Alayon which was to have begun today at Makati's Regional Trial Court was cancelled and put back until April. 

 

The hearing, a pre-trial and arraignment to be held before Judge Oscar B Pimentel started at 9am, but was re-scheduled for April 8th at 9am. This was after lawyer Atty Myrna N Cueva-Mercader filed a motion of consideration to defer the arraignment for Alayon which was granted. There was talk of the Ubando's having had a document notarized at the Philippine Embassy in London which may have been for a similar motion, but there was no mention of this in court. Bail of P18,000 was granted for Alayon's liberty. The Ubando's did not post a bail bond.

 

Additionally, the Ubando's did not appear in court and warrants have now been issued for their arrest. It is known the Ubando's are still in the UK, and although a Memorandum of Agreement has been signed between the RP & UK governments to establish an extradition treaty, this has not yet been ratified by the Philippine Senate.

 

Sources have suggested that there may be an application to have an Interpol Red alert for arrest issued for the Ubando's. It is known they also hold British passports.

 

3 of the complainants and 3 representatives attended the first hearing today. 

 

 

This all stems from the AJ Global remittance company based at 284 High Street, Orpington, Kent which is about 35 kilometers south east of London, owned by the Ubando's leaving their customers high and dry.

 

£227,000 of customers money had gone missing, with both sides, in the UK and Manila, claiming ignorance of the missing money. However, in pre-trial hearings, the prosecutors stated that as the Ubando family controlled the UK branch, AJ Global, and the Manila branch, Far East Express, trying to claim ignorance of the missing money was no defense, and that a trial should go ahead for estafa.

 

What is also interesting is the Ubando's property in Orpington. This was their base of operations and also was a supermarket selling Filipino food as well as cheap phone cards and other services for Filipinos. This is a 3 storey building with living accommodation above.

 

Enquiries made last year elicited the news that the Ubando's were no longer there, and that another company had taken over the operations there with no connection to the Ubando's. Unfortunately, the shop assistant was unable (or unwilling)  to say who the new owners were. Attempts to discover who the new owner was were fruitless.

 

Checks made with the Land Registry records last week show that the Ubando's are still the owners, but giving a contact address in the nearby town of Sevenoaks. These details filed with the Land Registry office would therefore appear to be false.

 

BBC reporter Melanie Abbot who went to the listed contact address last Friday was told that the owners had never heard of the Ubando's, had never met them and knew nothing of AJ Global. The owners of this property did state they purchased the property two years ago from an Englishman who it is known used to employ the Ubando's as domestic staff in Hong Kong and the UK until 2001.  

 

Attempts to interview the Ubando's have come to no avail.