Napoles in custody despite 'erroneous' inclusion in GCTA release list

MANILA, Philippines — Plunder convict Janet Lim Napoles remains in correctional facility despite her inclusion in a list of prisoners set for early release because of the good conduct and time allowance, the Department of Justice said Thursday.

Justice Undersecretary Markk Perete, spokesperson for the department, told reporters that the DOJ has asked the BuCor to explain Napoles’ inclusion in the list of nearly 2,000 inmates who may walk free soon.

Perete also stressed that Napoles “remains at the Correction Institution for Women” and has not been released.

ABS-CBN first reported that Napoles was part of the list, which noted that her sentence, supposedly for rape, expired on Nov. 12, 2018.

Isa ang convicted plunderer at tinaguriang "pork barrel queen" na si Janet Lim Napoles sa mga nasa listahan ng mapapalaya sa ilalim ng good conduct time allowance o GCTA law.

????: Bureau of Corrections pic.twitter.com/lP757ft08y

— News5 AKSYON (@News5AKSYON) September 12, 2019

Napoles is believed to be the brains behind the multibillion-peso Priority Development Assistance Fund barrel scam.

She was convicted of plunder, and is still facing a string of criminal cases at the Sandiganbayan related to the pork barrel scam.

RELATED: Sandiganbayan orders Janet Napoles’ transfer to Correctional

Clerical errors?

Sen. Richard Gordon, chair of the Senate’s Blue Ribbon Committee, also brought the error-riddled list up at the resumption of the Senate's inquiry into the GCTA law.

FOLLOW: LIVE: Senate probe into GCTA law, blocked release of Antonio Sanchez – Day 4

Gordon pointed out that there were inmates whose names were listed twice, while others were listed with wrong crimes.

BuCor Documentations and Record Section chief Ramon Roque, who is currently suspended from service, said that the list was made in haste.

“Yung list na yan, mabilisan pong pinagawa samin. Magpe-presscon po kasi,” he said.

(We compiled that list in haste because we were going to hold a press conference)

Roque said that he already asked the “computer section” of the BuCor who told him that some names appeared twice.