SAN FRANCISCO, California (The Adobo Chronicles, San Francisco Bureau) – Former Commission on Elections Chief Andy Bautista appeared in court yesterday to post bail after he was sued by the U.S. government for alleged money laundering.

Bautista, who fled the Philippines in 2017 to escape accusations of unexplained wealth and to dodge a subpoena issued by the Senate, was all smiles as he handed the clerk of court a check for $50,000.

The Adobo Chronicles caught up with Bautista as he was leaving the courthouse. We asked him about his urgency was in posting bail.

He said Sunday, September 24, is Folsom Street Fair, the annual street gathering/party of leather-loving San Franciscans and those with all sorts of fetishes connected with cowhide. (Bautista is known in the Philippines of having a leather fetish, and Filipinos call him “boy latigo,” meaning whip boy.)

“I wouldn’t miss Folsom for anything,” he said.

We asked him what he intends to wear to the fair but he declined to say. “I have a flair for surprises,” he said, “so I’ll see there.”