Sandiganbayan junks Estrada, Napoles bail plea with finality

MANILA, Philippines – The Sandiganbayan's fifth division on Thursday upheld with finality its previous ruling denying the petition of Sen. Jinggoy Estrada and alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles for bail.

The anti-graft court said both failed to present any new argument in their respective motions for reconsideration that would warrant the reversal of the Jan. 7, 2016 court ruling.

“After this Court has scrutinized every detail of the evidence presented, there is no need to impose on it again the same duty prescribed on the same arguments,” the ten-page ruling read.

“There being no new matter sufficiently persuasive to induce a modification of the questioned Resolution, the denial of the pending Motion for Reconsideration is only inevitable,” it added.

The Sandiganbayan's fifth division denied the petition for “lack of merit.”

The resolution was signed by Fifth Division chairman Associate Justice Roland Jurado and members Associate Justices Alexander Gesmundo and Ma. Theresa Dolores Gomez-Estoesta

Estrada and Napoles are both facing plunder and graft cases before the anti-graft court for their involvement in the alleged multi-billion-peso-pork barrel scam.

The senator is accused of amassing P183-million worth of kickbacks for allocating his Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) to fake non-government organizations linked to Napoles.

Estrada has been detained at the Philippine Police (PNP) Custodial Center in Camp Crame, Quezon City since June 2014 whereas Napoles is detained at the Correctional Institute for Women in Mandaluyong City.

In April 2015, Napoles was found guilty of illegally detaining whistleblower Benhur Luy and was sentenced to life imprisonment.

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