Napoles, 4 others found guilty in pork scam; ex-lawmaker cleared

The Sandiganbayan has sentenced Janet Lim-Napoles, the so-called brains of the pork barrel scam that came to light in 2013 and who has been behind bars for about a decade, to at least 66 years in prison for four counts of graft and four counts of malversation of public funds. The latest convictions were for cases involving pork barrel allotted to South Cotabato under then Rep. Arthur Pingoy Jr. In a decision handed down on Friday, the antigraft court’s Special Second Division also ordered Napoles to pay a total of P41.81 million, covering fines and the amount illegally disbursed. 2 NGOs Also found guilty and handed a 50-year prison term was Evelyn de Leon, an employee of Napoles in one of her “nongovernmental organizations” (NGOs) that were used as conduits for the funds. Three former officials of a government corporation were also convicted. The court acquitted Pingoy, now vice governor of South Cotabato, of the same charges and of direct bribery in another case. The cases revolved around what became of P20.9 million from Pingoy’s Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) that was allotted for his congressional district from 2007 to 2008. The money was disbursed to two Napoles NGOs—the Social Development Program for Farmers Foundation and Philippine Social Development Foundation Inc. (PSDFI)—supposedly for livelihood projects of farmers. The court heard testimonies on how documents were forged to make it appear that purchases and deliveries were made in connection with the projects. It also learned that the “agricultural starter kits and livelihood instructional materials” supposedly funded by the PDAF and coursed via the NGOs did not reach their intended recipients in the villages of South Cotabato. The 57-page decision was penned by Sandiganbayan associate justice Edgardo Caldona, with the concurrence of Associate Justices Arthur Malabaguio and Bernelito Fernandez. Associate Justice Oscar Herrera Jr., who chairs the Special Second Division, and Associate Justice Efren dela Cruz gave separate concurring and dissenting opinions. Nabcor officials Napoles was sentenced to a maximum of six years in prison for every graft conviction, and a maximum of 10 years per conviction for malversation. Of the four counts of graft, three carried fines of up to P18 million while one required P2.91 million. For the malversation cases, the fines were P2.9 million, P3.6 million, P4.8 million and P9.6 million. De Leon, who was included in the case as a PSDFI employee, was convicted of graft on three Read more at: inquirer

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