DOJ: No inconsistency between reso, Ombudsman's dismissal of bribe raps vs. De Lima

Published August 11, 2022 06:09 PM By JOAHNA LEI CASILAO,GMA News

There is no inconsistency between the Ombudsman resolution junking the direct and indirect bribery charges against former Senator Leila de Lima and the 2017 resolution of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on the drug charges against her.

 

In a statement, DOJ Prosecutor General Benedicto Malcontento said he wrote to Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla stating and describing the consistency of the two resolutions.

The DOJ noted that it also did not consider the testimony of Espinosa.

“In the DOJ Resolution, the Panel did not consider the testimony of Kerwin Espinosa as there was no corroborating evidence to support his allegation that he delivered P8 million to former Senator Leila de Lima for future protection,” it said.

“Therefore, it was clear to the DOJ Panel of Prosecutors that Espinosa’s confession on allegation of payment of protection was not convincing,” it added.

On Tuesday, the anti-graft court junked

the charges against De Lima and her former bodyguard, Ronnie Dayan, saying it found inconsistencies in the testimonies of self-confessed drug lord Kerwin Espinosa, Ram-Jhon Michael Espinosa, and Marcelo Adorco as to how the bribe was given and the supposed meeting with De Lima in Baguio City.

Espinosa previously accused De Lima of receiving a total of P8 million from him for her senatorial campaign through Dayan. He retracted his accusations last April.

“The Department would like to reiterate and point out that we are consistent with the recent resolution of the Ombudsman. In fact, our resolution in 2017 came way ahead,” it said.

Meanwhile, asked if the Ombudsman resolution may affect the two remaining drug charges against De Lima, Mico Clavano from the Office of the Secretary said the drug trading charges have different elements from bribery.

“The two charges against the former Senator are for drug trading which has different elements from that of bribery,” he said.

In February 2017, the DOJ filed three separate drug cases in court against De Lima in connection with her alleged participation in the illegal drug trade inside the New Bilibid Prison. One of the charges was junked by the Muntinlupa Court in February last year.

For her part, De Lima welcomed the Ombudsman's resolution and thanked the Office for “upholding the truth.”—LDF, GMA News

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