“Sometimes the scandal is not what law was broken, but what the law allows.”
—Edward Snowden
By Alex P. Vidal
WE wrote a series of articles about the case of controversial Iloilo balikbayan businessman Rey E. Grabato II on October 25 and 26, 2022, or four years before the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) uploaded his photos on its “Most Wanted Fraudster” website.
Now, the case has become viral. Grabato’s face or faces are all over the Internet and in the websites of major international media networks.
What a disaster for someone who is presumed innocent until proven otherwise.
Social media jerks even profoundly emphasized his being an “Ilonggo” as if ethnicity conjures an unyielding intent to commit impropriety.
We learned that Grabato has been in sickbay since returning from the United States.
Now that the FBI has offered a reward of up to $150,000 (around Philippine P9 million) for information that leads to Grabato’s arrest and conviction, will someone from Mina or nearby Iloilo municipalities take advantage of the large and tempting bounty?
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We all know that large cash rewards frequently motivate or galvanize friends, close associates, and family members to turn in wanted fugitives.
A cash reward or bounty will always create a powerful excitement and motivation to put personal gain above loyalty. Turning on a friend can remove a threat or secure survival in competitive or high-stakes environments.
Loyal or not, some friends-turned-tipsters easily convince themselves that "it is just business" or "just a game," making the betrayal feel less personal to them.
On the part of those who love and sympathize with him, hiding a fugitive or living on the run creates immense stress, fear, and resentment within a family or friend group, wearing down loyalty over time.
Also, there is immense concern informants often worry that if they do not turn the person in, they might get caught helping them or face legal trouble themselves.
After the US Department of Justice revealed they have filed cases against the now 47-year-old Grabato, a Filipino citizen, for conspiracy to commit securities fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to defraud the United States with respect to tax, we wrote that “the scandal that walloped the Grabato political family in Mina, Iloilo was like a hurricane.”
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All of a sudden, they became the talk of the town; their enemies could be ecstatic after news spread around the globe (that’s the power of the Internet media) that the son of couple Rey and Lydia, both prominent political leaders in the third district of Iloilo, was indicted in New Jersey for alleged involvement in a $650 million Ponzi scheme and conspiring to evade $26 million in US federal tax liabilities.
Lydia Grabato is the former mayor of Mina, Iloilo, while husband Rey is the incumbent mayor. They had been scheduled to talk to the Iloilo press on October 25, 2022 “to clear matters” but called it off.
The cases against the accused son were filed in the United States. The alleged accomplice, Thomas Nicholas Salzano, 64, of Secaucus, in New Jersey, was already arrested.
The son Grabato, who isn’t a US citizen, was believed to have fled to the Philippines when the scandal erupted in New Jersey after the pandemic.
It wasn’t immediately known if the Grabato couple would present their son or defend him in absentia.
It was not also known if the parents would convince the son to surrender although they already issued a statement that he was sick and being taken care of in an undisclosed location.
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The Grabatos aren’t only known as political leaders and allies of Governor Arthur Defensor Jr. and former governor Arthur Defensor Sr., but also as a “wealthy” family that owns several businesses in Iloilo province.
No one has openly linked their wealth to the son’s alleged fraudulent activities in the United States that resulted in 18 counts of criminal cases.
The parents have not been linked to graft and corruption and illegal activities and were known to be “outstanding” public servants.
But there were reportedly ugly whispers and speculations both from their friends and enemies that may not be good to the ears of the family.
Some people say, “it is better to be charged in court and go to jail for murder than to be involved in a grand thievery, get arrested and thrown behind bars.”
The son Grabato, who hasn’t issued a public statement since the scandal erupted, is still presumed innocent until proven guilty.
(The author, who is now based in New York City, used to be the editor-in-chief of two leading daily newspapers in Iloilo, Philippines.—Ed)
