SC upholds Napoles indictment over ‘pork’ scam

MANILA, Philippines – The Supreme Court (SC) has rejected more pleas of convicted businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles for dismissal of several of the criminal charges filed against her before the Sandiganbayan in connection with the multibillion-peso pork barrel scam that she allegedly masterminded.

In session yesterday, the high court decided to dismiss two more petitions of Napoles questioning her indictment by the Office of the Ombudsman on charges of graft, malversation of public funds and corruption of public officials in connection with the separate cases against former Cagayan de Oro congressman Constantino Jaraula and former Benguet representative Samuel Dangwa.

The SC also dismissed similar petitions by Napoles’ driver John Raymund de Asis, former Technology Resource Center director general Alan Javellana and former National Agribusiness Corp. president Alan Javellana on the same charges.

Just like Napoles, De Asis was indicted by the ombudsman for the same charges in connection with Dangwa’s case.

Napoles created nongovernment organizations that were used in the diversion of pork barrel or the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) of lawmakers.

Ortiz and Javellana, on the other hand, filed separate petitions questioning their indictment for several counts of graft in connection with the plunder cases against former senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Ramon Revilla Jr. and Jinggoy Estrada.

“The Court found no grave abuse of discretion on the part of the ombudsman in finding probable cause to indict petitioners. The Court deferred to the findings of the ombudsman in the absence of grave abuse of discretion,” SC spokesman Theodore Te said in a press briefing.

Earlier, the high court dismissed similar petitions of Napoles in connection with other PDAF cases filed by the ombudsman against her before the Sandiganbayan.

Of the officials indicted in PDAF cases, only Enrile was able to secure relief from the SC. In August last year, the high court granted the petition for bail of the 92-year-old former lawmaker.