Pork barrel scam whistleblower Benhur Luy on Thursday said he transferred funds to the bank accounts in the US of businesswoman Janet Lim Napoles now facing prosecution for money laundering in a criminal case filed in the United States.
Continuing his testimony at the trial of the plunder case against Napoles and former senator Ramon Revilla Jr. at the Sandiganbayan, Luy alleged that part of the funds from Revilla’s pork barrel or Priority Development Assistance Fund that supposedly went to implementing agencies were sent to the US.
Speaking in Tagalog, Luy said in his testimony his group had the money sent to her US accounts by telegraphic transfer.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra confirmed Wednesday that Napoles, along with her children Jo Christine, James Christopher and Jeane Catherine, her brother Reynaldo and his wife Ana Marie, had been indicted by a federal grand jury for the crime of conspiracy to commit money laundering, domestic money laundering and international money laundering.
Luy said he was “not allowed to speak anything about” possibilities that might be asked to testify against the Napoleses in the US in the light of his latest revelations.
In a related development:
• Former President Benigno Aquino III, reacting to the ruling of the US federal grand jury indicting Napoles and her children, said while the Philippines had extradition treaties with 13 countries, including the United States, the plunder and graft raps against her must first be heard and resolved in the Philippines.
“During my time, we had extradite (sic) treaties with 13 countries. They believe that they [US] have the right to [do so] if they want to,” he said.
“But, of course, we want to have our own justice that needs to be served first before them.”
The US court indicted Napoles and the other accused, along with 20 lawmakers and other government officials, converted to their own benefit millions of dollar in pork barrel fund and transmitted $20 million of the amount into the US “to purchase assets, including real property and luxury vehicles.”
Napoles was charged with five counts of plunder and graft charges before the Sandiganbayan in connection with the P10-billion pork barrel fund scam involving ex-senators Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada, Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. and Juan Ponce Enrile.
Luy said that at the moment, he was focused on providing testimonies on the five plunder and several other graft cases at the Sandigandayan against Napoles and lawmakers.
Luy is scheduled on Tuesday, Aug. 7, to testify again at the trial of Revilla’s plunder and graft cases.
Napoles, currently detained at the Camp Bagong Diwa detention center in Taguig City, is being tried for plunder, graft and other cases before the Sandiganbayan in connection with the multibillion-peso pork barrel scam.
According to US Attorney Nick Hanna, they were now working with the Philippine government to extradite Napoles and her family members to the US.
In August 2013, Napoles accompanied by her husband Jimmy and lawyer Lorna Kapunan surrendered to Aquino in Malacañang after charges of plunder were filed against her.
In another development, when asked by the media, Aquino said he was hoping newly appointed Ombudsman Samuel Martires would be fair in hearing the graft and usurpation charges filed against him in connection with the Mamasapano incident, and the graft charges for involvement in the P3-billion Dengvaxia fiasco.
“I am hoping he will fairly judge me,” he said.
