MANILA (Mabuhay) – Whistleblower Benhur Luy on Wednesday dropped by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to give Special Allotment Release Order (SARO) numbers to prove that money being used by his supposed employer, businesswoman Janet Lim Napoles, came from lawmakers’ “pork barrel.” Luy’s lawyer Levito Baligod told reporters his client visited the NBI along […]
By Jerry E. EsplanadaPhilippine Daily Inquirer 1:06 pm | Monday, July 22nd, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—The government will repatriate shortly three Filipino fishermen who were rescued Saturday by Taiwanese coast guard about 80 nautical miles off Kaohsiung port in southern Taiwan days after they were caught in storm last week, the spokesman of the Philippine Coast Guard said Monday. Commander Armand Balilo, also chief of the PCG Public Affairs Office, told the Inquirer on Monday that they were “coordinating with the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (in Taipei) for the repatriation of the rescued fishermen.” He identified the fishermen as Ronald Dumaran, Edwin Zoilo and Gener Mendoza, all residents of Sta. Ana, Cagayan. Citing a report from the Taiwan Economic and Cultural Office in Makati City, Balilo said the fishermen “encountered a storm last July 15.” “On board a fishing boat, they drifted for five days until they were rescued by a Taiwanese Coast Guard vessel,” he said. “They are in good condition and currently under the custody of the TCG in Kaohsiung.” However, “another Filipino fishing boat (with an undisclosed number of crew) is still missing,” said Balilo. In May, a Philippine fisheries patrol vessel manned by the PCG shot at a Taiwanese fishing boat near Balintang Channel in northern Philippines. The PCG had admitted that its personnel shot at the vessel in an incident that left Taiwanese fisherman Hung Shih-chen dead. The Coast Guard shrugged off an Inquirer report that the National Bureau of Investigation had recommended the filing Read More …
The businesswoman implicated in multi-billion peso ghost projects being probed by the National Bureau of Investigation has refuted accusations an alleged former employee leveled against her, her brother and her company, JLN Corporation. Janet Lim Napoles said in an affidavit she submitted to the Department of Justice that her accuser, Benhur Luy, was not her employee and that the “JLN Group of Companies” Luy has identified is not her JLN Corporation registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Napoles’ affidavit was filed last June, but the Department of Justice released it only on Friday. “JLN has never transacted business or closed deals with the government or any of its agencies or instrumentalities, much less the government offices which Benhur mentioned and especially those enumerated by (Luy’s relatives) Arturo, Gertrudes, Arthur, and Annabelle… in their joint sworn statement,” Napoles said. Her company was alleged to have been tapped in ghost projects of the government allegedly pegged in one report as totalling P10 billion worth of projects, including the fertilizer fund scam, the Malampaya fund scam, and anomalies in the implementation of several PDAF (Priority Development Assistance Fund)-funded projects. She did acknowledge that trading in construction materials is among the concerns of her JLN Corp. “I certainly was not involved in any of the high profile scams which occured during the previous administration,” Napoles said in an affidavit she submitted to the Department of Justice. The businesswoman said the fact her name and that of her company were never mentioned in a Read More …
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) is studying the possibility of including in its investigation several lawmakers being implicated in the P10-billion fund scam by a syndicate allegedly using “pork barrel” in ghost projects. This was according to Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, who confirmed on Friday that the NBI is in the middle of probing a fund scam being allegedly carried out by businesswoman Janet Lim Napoles, owner of JLN Group of Companies. Her firm was allegedly tapped for government-funded projects that were later found questionable, including the P728-million fund for a fertilizer project for poor farmers that were allegedly diverted to benefit politicians and a sitting president. “Whether or not lawmakers are or will be part of the NBI probe or whether or not there’s need to issue a look out bulletin will depend on results of the evaluation of the evidence,” De Lima said. De Lima refused to give further details on the ongoing NBI probe on the fund scam. She also refused to identify the lawmakers who would be investigated. “Given the gravity of the allegations, we’re keeping such investigation under wraps until the NBI completes its evidence gathering and evaluation,” she said. Napoles and her brother Reynaldo Lim were earlier charged by the NBI for illegally detaining Benhur Luy, a lead employee of JLN Group of Companies and a probable witnesses in the fund scam. The Department of Justice (DOJ), however, dismissed the complaint for lack of probable cause. The NBI has already moved for Read More …
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has finished a “rationalization plan” to streamline its offices, highlighted by the hiring of almost 70 new agents and investigators in the last two years. On Thursday, Justice Secrtary Leila de Lima said the NBI, which is under the Department of Justice, is still looking for its last batch of recruits this year for positions in the newly formed Forensic Science Division. “The DOJ is done with its major rationalization plans. We continue to fine-tune the implementation and request for the new or revised positions to meet the changing demands of justice work,” De Lima said. “Human resources is the key to any high performance organization,” she added. De Lima said the rationalization plan was designed and conceived in 2005 as a government-wide effort to streamline offices and establish more integrated functions. However, it was only under De Lima’s leadership that “serious efforts were made to push for the plan’s completion.” For his part, NBI Director Nonnatus Caesar Rojas said the new recruitment would “motivate us to rethink our policies and assign our best people to the most critical tasks.” Rojas said the NBI would soon be submitting its request for the recruitment of the last batch of new NBI personnel. Another highlight of the rationalization plan are the strengthening of the Investigative Service, the clustered approach to using science and technology in crime fighting, the improved Information and Communications Technology Division, and the deployment of NBI personnel where the need is greatest. — Read More …
By Tetch Torres-TupasINQUIRER.net 3:04 pm | Thursday, July 4th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—Justice Secretary Leila De Lima ordered the National Bureau of Investigation to hunt down the alleged recruiter of the executed drug mule. “I am directing the NBI (National Bureau of Investigation) to investigate and hunt down the alleged recruiter with the end view of filing charges against him or her and other members of the syndicate, if any,” De Lima told reporters in a chance interview Thursday. Filipino children light candles outside the house of Sally Villanueva, one of three Filipinos executed in China after being convicted of drug trafficking, last March 2011. AFP File Photo The Filipina drug mule was executed Wednesday after the Supreme Court People’s Court of China upheld the death sentence handed down by a lower court on June 26. The 35-year old Filipina and a mother of two from Metro Manila was the fifth Filipino national to be executed for drug trafficking in China. She was arrested last January 2011 after attempting to smuggle around six kilograms of heroin in Hangzhou International Airport. De Lima also urged the family of the Filipina drug mule to coordinate with the NBI. “They probably have more information that could help the NBI in its investigation,” De Lima said. De Lima said Filipinos are among those targeted for the transport of these illegal substances because there are some 10 million Filipinos working overseas. Follow Us Recent Stories: Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and Read More …
By Maila AgerINQUIRER.net 2:44 pm | Thursday, July 4th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines – Law enforcers are hunting down drug syndicates involved in recruiting couriers in the country, Vice President Jejomar Binay said on Thursday in the aftermath of the execution Wednesday of a Filipina drug mule in China. National Bureau of Investigation Reaction and Arrest and Interdiction Division Lawyer Ross Jonathan Galicia presents to the reporters 60 improvised capsule containing shabu, which are about the size of a thumb at the NBI Headquarters, Manila. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO “Tinatrabaho ‘yan ngayon ng PDEA at NBI. ‘Yung doon sa tatlo, nahuli na nila ‘yung recruiter (PDEA and NBI are now working on it. They already arrested the recruiter of the three),” Binay said in a statement. PDEA is Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency while NBI is National Bureau of Investigation. Binay was referring to Mapet Cortez alias Tita Cacayan, who allegedly recruited Sarah Ordinario-Villanueva, one of the three overseas Filipino workers executed in China last year for drug smuggling. Cortez allegedly misled Ordinario-Villanueva into taking what she thought was an empty suitcase that turned out to be secretly lined with more than four kilos of heroin. Binay said the Philippine government is “doing all it could to stop Filipinos from engaging in the illegal drug trade.” Drug couriers, however, usually get the drugs outside the country, he pointed out. “Ang ruta nila usually via Dubai tapos Hong Kong tapos doon na sa may area ng Shanghai (Their route usually is via Dubai to Read More …
The family of the Filipina drug courier who was executed in China today is determined to seek the assistance of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in nabbing the Nigerian who recruited her as a drug mule. In an exclusive report by John Consulta on “24 Oras” Wednesday, the family of the executed Filipina said they are planning to approach the NBI to make an artist’s sketch of the Nigerian recruiter who they only know by the name “Jarius.” The family members said they still recall what Jarius looks like even though they last saw him in 2008, when he recruited the Filipina. The Filipina’s family has left their home to grieve privately following the Department of Foreign Affairs’ announcement, also on Wednesday, that the Filipina has been executed. The father of the 35-year old Filipina said their family is especially protective of her 9-year old daughter, who is unaware that her mother is already dead. The father said the Filipina’s daughter only knows her mother is working abroad. The father added that the family is waiting for updates from the Filipina’s mother and younger sibling as to when her remains will be brought back to Manila. Vice President Jejomar Binay on Tuesday told the media that the family wants the Filipina’s remains to be cremated immediately after the execution. — VC, GMA News
By Jeannette I. AndradePhilippine Daily Inquirer 4:47 am | Tuesday, June 18th, 2013 AFP PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—A judge has issued warrants for the arrest of 44 Chinese and Taiwanese nationals accused of involvement in credit card fraud. Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 216 Judge Alfonso Cruz III ordered the arrest of the foreigners, who are charged with violating the Access Devices Regulation Act of 1998 for hacking into the records of credit cardholders and using the information obtained to manufacture fake credit cards. Bail for each of the accused was set at P24,000. The 44 foreigners were previously rounded up by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation’s (NBI) Technical Intelligence Division in simultaneous raids conducted in November 27 last year at Don Antonio Heights and White Plains Subdivisions. Although the NBI agents were able to confiscate a skimming device, several bogus credit cards and other electronic devices from the group, the inquest prosecutor recommended that the case be subjected to further investigation, resulting in the release of those arrested. Last month, Assistant State Prosecutor Arnold Magpantay resolved that there was probable cause to indict the foreigners for credit card fraud. In his resolution, Magpantay said that while the electronic devices appeared to be ordinary items (routers, laptop computers and phones), these could be used as tools in committing a crime. He also noted that none of the 44 Chinese and Taiwanese nationals were able to sufficiently explain their possession of skimming devices which were used in the manufacture Read More …
By Christine O. Avendaño Philippine Daily Inquirer 2:52 am | Friday, June 14th, 2013 Justice Secretary Leila de Lima: Confirmation. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—Justice Secretary Leila de Lima on Thursday confirmed an Inquirer report that the National Bureau of Investigation had recommended the filing of criminal charges against coast guards involved in the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman in northern Philippine waters last month. De Lima also confirmed the Inquirer information that the NBI, which investigated the shooting death of fisherman Hung Shih-chen here and in Taiwan, submitted its report to her on Tuesday. In text messages and a phone patch interview, De Lima, who is in Madrid, Spain, for a conference on capital punishment, said she submitted the NBI report to President Aquino before she left Manila on Tuesday night. She said the NBI recommended criminal and administrative charges against coast guards involved in the shooting of the Taiwanese fishing boat Guan Ta Hsin 28 in the Balintang Channel on May 9. De Lima said she was not sure whether employees of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) were among those recommended for prosecution. The BFAR owns the coastal patrol vessel MCS-3001, but the vessel is manned by Philippine Coast Guard personnel. There were 17 coast guards and two BFAR employees on the MCS-3001 when the shooting happened. Fourteen high-powered rifles were submitted to the NBI for the investigation. De Lima declined to disclose how many personnel had been recommended for charges and on what Read More …