Prosecutors urge SC to deny Napoles' bail bid

Ombudsman prosecutors have urged the Supreme Court to deny businesswoman Janet Lim Napoles' bid to post bail for her plunder case with former Senator Juan Ponce Enrile in connection with the pork barrel scam.

In a 34-page comment, the prosecutors asked the high court to deny the petition for certiorari filed by Napoles, which questions the Sandiganbayan Third Division's resolutions denying her petition for bail.

In her petition, Napoles argued that she should be allowed to post bail as the prosecutors failed to provide strong evidence that she conspired with her co-accused in committing plunder and prove that she amassed, accumulated and acquired ill-gotten wealth worth at least P50 million.

The prosecutors said the issues Napoles raised are "questions of facts" requiring review of evidence, which is not a function of the Supreme Court under Rule 65 of the Rules of Court.

"It is not the function of the Court to examine, review or evaluate the evidence all over again. It leaves these matters to the lower court, which has more opportunity and facilities to examine the evidence," the prosecutors' comment read.

"[T]he proposed course of action of Napoles is not legally feasible. On this score alone, her petition must fail," they added.

The prosecutors also argued that the Sandiganbayan was correct in denying Napoles' petition for bail, as they were able to establish "proof evident" of her guilt.

They said that after the bail hearing for the plunder case, the Sandiganbayan declared that evidence of guilt of Napoles was "strong."

The evidence presented during the bail hearings were also able to show criminal conspiracy among the accused, the prosecutors added.

Napoles had argued that there is nothing in the presented evidence that would show her involvement in the PDAF-funded projects of Enrile, and that her mere endorsement of the non-government organizations was not enough to show conspiracy.

But the prosecutors said the Sandiganbayan had already dismissed these arguments twice, in its first resolution denying her petition for bail, and its second resolution denying her motion for reconsideration.

The prosecutors also insisted that contrary to Napoles' claims, they were able to prove that Enrile and his former aide, Jessica Lucila "Gigi" Reyes, in conspiracy with the businesswoman, amassed, accumulated and acquired ill-gotten of at least P50 million, constituting to the crime of plunder.

They added that Napoles herself was not able to prove that the Sandiganbayan committed grave abuse of discretion when they issued the resolutions denying her petition for bail.

"[O]n the face of the assailed resolutions vis-a-vis the petition, there is no showing that there was gross misapprehension of facts on the part of the Sandiganbayan," the prosecutors' comment read.

"[O]ther than sweeping averment that the Sandiganbayan committed grave abuse of discretion in denying her application for bail, Napoles miserably failed to establish the same," it added.

Apart from the Third Division, the Sandiganbayan First and Fifth Divisions, who handle her PDAF cases with former Senators Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr. and Jose "Jinggoy" Estrada, also denied Napoles' petition for bail.

Napoles is currently detained at the Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City, to which she was transferred from Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City after she was acquitted from her serious illegal detention case involving her former aide Benhur Luy. —KBK, GMA News