MANILA - Gregorio Araneta III, son-in-law of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, has asked an anti-graft court to order the release of sequestered properties associated to his name.

The husband of Marcos' daughter, Irene, asked the Sandiganbayan 4th Division to order the Presidential Commission on Good Government to release Northern Express Transport Inc Golden Needle Inc, High Five Philippines Inc and Philippine Semi-Conductor Devices Inc.

In a motion for partial reconsideration, Araneta said the companies should be included in the resolution of the court promulgated on January 14, which lifted the writ of sequestration and ordered the release of his two companies, IMEXCO Enterprises Inc and Asialand Development Corp.

“It should be stressed that what is being asked by the movant is the release of properties that have been sequestered as a result of a perceived connection to him, but that have now absolutely no connection with the pending case with the honorable court, due to the fact that the movant was fully dropped as a party defendant in this case,” Araneta’s lawyer Mary Ann Olalia-Lanete said in the motion.

Araneta was dropped from a civil case involving former first lady Imelda Marcos and her children, including his wife Irene.

“It would be improper for PCGG to still manage and preserve said properties and assets of corporations, when in fact the person to whom they linked such properties is already not included in the pending suit,” Olalia-Lanete said.

The 4th Division is expected to decide on Civil Case No. 0002 involving the P200 billion civil liability of the Marcoses after both the prosecution and the defense presented their respective memoranda or summary of arguments.