THE Sandiganbayan has convicted alleged pork barrel queen Janet Lim Napoles for graft and malversation of public funds, sentencing her with 64 years of jail time.
In a decision handed down by the Sandiganbayan Special Second Division, it has found Napoles guilty of four counts each of graft and malversation of public funds in relation to the alleged misuse of the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF), or pork barrel, of former South Cotabato representative Arthur Pingoy worth P20 million.
The anti-graft court sentenced Napoles to 40 years imprisonment for her malversation conviction and 24 years for graft.
She was also ordered to pay the Philippine government P41 million.
Convicted and sentenced along with Napoles for malversation of public funds were former state-run National Agribusiness Corporation (Nabcor) officials Rhodora Mendoza, Victor Cacal and Maria Ninez Guañizo.
Aside from jail time, they were also ordered to return P2.9 million, the amount of public funds they malversed to the government.
Evelyn de Leon, president of the Napoles-controlled non-government entity
Philippine Social Development Foundation Inc., was also convicted of three counts each of graft and malversation of public benefits, getting at least 48 years of jail time.
Napoles’ other co-accused, including Pingoy, were acquitted “for failure of the prosecution to prove their guilt beyond reasonable doubt.”
Napoles was also earlier found guilty of graft and malversation of public funds in relation to the P7 million worth of pork barrel of former Davao del Norte first district representative Arrel Olaño that was funneled through her fake non-government organizations Countrywide Agri and Rural Economic Development Foundation Inc. (CARED) and Philippine Social Development Foundation Inc. (PSDFI).
She was also convicted along with former Cagayan de Oro representative Constantino Jaraula over the same charges in 2021.
Napoles is currently detained at the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City due to her plunder conviction in relation to the illegal disbursement of P224 million worth of PDAF of Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. in December 2018. (SunStar Philippines)