Sandigan removes late Marcos crony’s estate from forfeiture case

The Sandiganbayan has removed the estate of the late Roberto Benedicto, an alleged crony of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, from the forfeiture proceedings of ill-gotten wealth government lawyers had estimated to be worth around P102 billion.

A November 5 resolution from the Second Division formally dropped the name of Benedicto from the list of defendants who had waived his right to present evidence in Civil Case No. 0034.

The prosecution made no objections on the exclusion of Benedicto, who died on May 15, 2000, in the case. It cited a compromise agreement his estate entered into with the Presidential Commission on Government in 1990.

"Considering that there is no objection on the part of the plaintiff for the name of Roberto S. Benedicto to be dropped as party-defendant in the instant case in view of its confirmation that said defendant and the government through the PCGG entered into a Compromise Agreement, which was duly approved by this Court and affirmed by the Supreme Court," the resolution read.

Associate Justice Lorifel Pahimna penned the resolution, with the concurrence of Associate Justices Oscar Herrera Jr. and Michael Frederick Musngi.

The estate of Benedicto had to enter into a compromise agreement with the PCGG in November 1990 for the withdrawal of his case in exchange for the full takeover of his properties, including television networks IBC-13 and RPN-9.

Benedicto allegedly illegally enriched himself for the improvement of these networks' facilities. He was also accused of being the “conduit of purloined funds in billions of pesos and dollars”  of the Marcoses.

He served as a Philippine ambassador to Japan,  president of the Philippine National Bank, chairman of the Philippine Sugar Commission, and board chairman of the National Sugar Trading Corporation during the Marcos regime. — MDM, GMA News