He also served under Arroyo as Secretary of the Departments of the Interior and Local Government, Environment and Natural Resources, Energy, and National Defense.

A week after being accused of corruption during his tenure as AFP chief of staff, Reyes died due to a gunshot wound in an apparent suicide, according to Scene of the Crime Operatives.

[2] Reyes was married to Teresita Pernia-Reyes with whom he has five sons, Pablo, Angelito (a former representative from Taguig), Marc, Carlo and Judd.

Angelo Reyes began his military career as a team leader in the Philippine Army's 1st Special Forces Airborne Regiment.

Under his leadership, he was able to imbibe a culture of excellence at the department of national defense and transformed it into a technology-driven defense establishment making it more responsive to the challenges of rapidly changing security establishment amidst the rising trend in global terrorism, He was instrumental in crafting the National Internal Security Plan which is now being implemented by the government in addressing the root causes of insurgency through poverty alleviation, delivery of basic services and empowerment of the local government.

He ventured on a tri-media information campaign program dubbed “FIRST DEFENSE” which was proven effective in educating individuals and families on how to be self-reliant in times of disasters and calamities.

At the time when the global crude oil spiked to its record highs, Reyes did an excellent job as the energy chief by implementing various programs to assist consumers adjust to the new cost of gas and other fuels at the pump.

On January 27, 2011, retired Lt. Col. George Rabusa, who served as AFP's budget officer during Reyes' tenure as Armed Forces chief, testified before a Senate panel and accused Reyes of receiving P50 million in "send-off" money when he retired from the Armed Forces, as part of a decades-old military tradition.

On the morning of February 8, 2011, a month before his 66th birthday, Reyes, together with two of his sons and a bodyguard, visited his parents' grave at the Loyola Memorial Park in Marikina.

He was rushed to Quirino Memorial Medical Center in Quezon City, but was declared dead on arrival and attempts to revive him were unsuccessful.