THE Office of the Ombudsman has ordered the dismissal of Albay Gov. Edcel Greco “Grex” Lagman from government service after finding him guilty of an administrative offense of grave misconduct.
Deputy Ombudsman for Visayas Dante Vargas signed the dismissal order dated April 10, 2025 as officer-in-charge since Ombudsman Samuel Martires was on official leave from office.
The recommendation for Lagman’s dismissal was submitted by a special panel of investigators headed by Preliminary Investigation and Administrative Adjudication Bureau A (PIAB-A) director Bonifacio Mandrilla as team leader and Graft Investigation and Prosecution Officers (GIPO) Lucielo Ramirez Jr, and Sylvester Alcazar as members.
Lagman can appeal the Ombudsman order.
Investigators said they found evidence in the form of bank deposit slips which showed that Lagman received millions in cash as payola from illegal gambling operators in the province.
“The 60 BDO bank deposit slips, together with the initial accusatory affidavits of complainants and his witnesses show that respondent received payolas or protection money from jueteng operations totaling P8,100,000 from August 2019 to June 2022,” the Ombudsman said in its 15-page decision.
According to the case records, Lagman was serving as vice governor when he received the jueteng payola and that the payment was delivered “in anticipation of a protection for the operation of jueteng.”
The panel noted that the evidence supports an indictment for a criminal offense of indirect bribery since all the elements are present: the respondent is a public officer, he accepted gifts or benefits, and the gifts are given by reason of his office.
For providing protection to the illegal numbers game, it said evidence qualifies Lagman as a “coddler and protector” of jueteng which is punishable under the Anti-Illegal Gambling Act (RA 9287).
Investigators underscored that Lagman failed to sufficiently rebut the deposit transactions.
“On the contrary, respondent even admitted that the subject BDO account to which the amounts were deposited belongs to him; further, there was never an explanation from respondent on the source and purpose of these deposits,” they pointed out.
The complaint against Lagman was filed on February 13, 2024 by Alwin Nimo, a self-confessed jueteng bagman and former barangay chairman from Daraga, Albay.
Nimo said he was the one who linked Lagman to gambling lords and initially acted as the conduit to deliver P60,000 weekly payola to the respondent.
He said fear for his own safety forced him to reveal his involvement in jueteng after Lagman publicly denied accepting any cash delivery. Nimo said this placed him at risk of being targeted by jueteng operators.
