Sandiganbayan Cleared Janet Napoles in 16 Cases of Pork-Barrel Scam
The Sandiganbayan acquitted Janet Lim Napoles of 16 graft charges related to her involvement in the pork-barrel scam.
Napoles has been found not guilty on all 16 counts of graft in connection with the alleged improper use of Sen. Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr.’s pork barrel fund. He was, however, convicted on other charges for misusing a previous Davao del Sur lawmaker’s discretionary cash.
According to the verdict of the Sandiganbayan’s second division, the prosecution failed to prove that Napoles violated the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. It should be noted that Napoles was previously imprisoned in 2015 as a result of the several cases filed against him.
However, several of them have been overturned, so the businessman may be released in the next few days. In the corruption investigation, Napoles’ name was raised after he reportedly utilized businessmen’s companies to allocate the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), sometimes known as pork barrel.
Based on the report, Napoles was accused of solely using the PDAFs that his company got in “ghost projects,” with the donors reportedly receiving kickbacks from him. Bong Revilla, Jinggoy Estrada, Juan Ponce Enrile, and other lawmakers were among those charged.
The money allegedly deposited in Napoles-owned firms and organizations amounted to P3-B. So far, Napoles’ team has not issued a statement regarding the court’s decision in their favor.
READ ALSO: Bong Revilla Plans To End His Political Career In 2025
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