- Petitioner
- Tagadiad
- Respondent
- Suriaga
- Citation
- G.R. No. 234580
- Court
- Supreme Court
- Division
- Second Division
- Decided
- October 13, 2021
Summary
This case involved a habeas corpus petition filed by Ace Vergel Albano for Val Luis Tagadiad, who was arrested by barangay tanods for theft and detained at a Manila police station. The Supreme Court dismissed the petition, ruling that the arrest was lawful as a citizen's arrest under Section 5, Rule 113, since the tanods had personal knowledge of the crime based on CCTV footage. The Court emphasized that even if the arrest was illegal, it was cured by the filing of the criminal Information. More importantly, since the Information was filed before the habeas corpus petition, the writ was no longer available under Section 4, Rule 102. The petition became moot and academic when the petitioner was released on bail and the criminal case was eventually dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. The case demonstrates the limitations of habeas corpus as a remedy once formal charges are filed and highlights the mootness doctrine in Philippine jurisprudence.