TWO employees of Eternal Gardens whom the company said were the victims of “unjust arrest” and “illegal detention” were released on Monday (October 16) after three days in detention on the basis of a complaint filed by an officer of the Batangas City Prosecutor’s Office for alleged theft of a marble marker.
However, the company said it will “pursue legal actions available under the circumstance to guarantee the protection of its employees’ rights, and ensure that those responsible for these unjust actions will be held accountable.”
It called on the Department of Justice and the Philippine National Police “to take prompt action and support a thorough, impartial investigation into the blatant violations of established protocols and legal procedures.”
The employees were taken in by Batangas cops on a warrantless arrest after a client of Eternal Gardens took the issue with a missing marker (lapida) that was being cleaned ahead of the ‘Undas’ commemoration. Despite explanations by company officials, the client, a city prosecutor, caused the arrest of two employees, and had them detained until Monday, when the company posted bail for them.
BELOW IS FULL STATEMENT OF ETERNAL GARDENS:
Significant developments have occurred since the incident involving the unjust arrest of two of our employees by the PNP Batangas City on Friday, October 13, 2023 pursuant to the complaint filed by a member of the Batangas City Prosecutor’s Office regarding an alleged theft of a marble marker.
Early this evening, October 16, 2023, after having been detained for three days, both of our employees have been released from custody after we posted bail on their behalf. These employees, who were simply trying to assist a client with her concerns, have been wrongly accused and illegally detained, suffered trauma and were emotionally and physically affected by the events that transpired. The impact of this incident extends not only to them but also to their families and our company as a whole. We want to assure everyone that the management of Eternal Gardens is fully committed to ensuring that justice is served in this matter.
We wish to reiterate our serious concern about the blatant misuse of power carrying out a warrantless arrest in a situation that did not warrant such actions.
Additionally, we condemn the violation of our workers’ rights, especially their right to be secured from illegal arrest and the denial of their right to legal representation during the custodial investigation and the inquest.
The company continues to condemn the blatant disregard of these rights and will pursue legal actions available under the circumstance to guarantee the protection of its employees’ rights, and ensure that those responsible for these unjust actions will be held accountable.
Once again, we call on the Department of Justice and the Philippine National Police to take prompt action and support a thorough, impartial investigation into the blatant violations of established protocols and legal procedures.
We thank you for your continued trust in Eternal Gardens.