Sandiganbayan: Jinggoy,

Napoles can seek outright

dismissal of plunder raps
By: Gabriel Pabico Lalu - Reporter / @GabrielLaluINQ
INQUIRER.net / 01:09 PM March 20, 2019

Janet Lim Napoles and former Sen. Jinggoy Estrada. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The Sandiganbayan on Wednesday allowed former Senator

Jinggoy Estrada and pork barrel mastermind Janet Lim Napoles to seek the outright
dismissal of the plunder charges they are facing.

The Sandiganbayan Fifth Division granted their separate motions for leave to file
demurrer to evidence in two resolutions released on Wednesday but were dated on
March 13.
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With the anti-graft court’s decision, Estrada and Napoles can now challenge the
sufficiency of the evidence presented by the prosecution concerning the plunder case.

“After a meticulous examination of the totality of the evidence presented by the

prosecution, both testimonial and documentary, the court resolves to grant the present
motion of the accused, to sufficiently provide him an opportunity to challenge the
sufficiency of the prosecution’s evidence establishing the material elements of the
offense needed to support a judgment of guilt,” the resolution for Estrada’s motion said.

The resolutions were signed by Fifth Division chair Associate Justice Rafael Lagos, and
Associate Justices Maria Theresa Mendoza-Arcega and Maryann Corpus-Mañalac.

Both Estrada and Napoles were given 10 days from the receipt of the resolution to file
their respective demurrers, while the prosecution is given another 10 days after the
accused’s camps file their documents to submit comments before the court makes a
decision on the charges.

READ: Jinggoy seeks to have plunder case thrown out

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According to Estrada, the prosecution has not proven and substantiated its case against
him, adding that there are no pieces of evidence pointing to him as the “main
plunderer” or the pork barrel scam’s mastermind.

The prosecution then countered that it was able to prove that Estrada accumulated ill-
gotten wealth after the former senator allegedly gained P55.79 million due to the
scheme.

In addition to that, the prosecution claimed that Estrada was “an active participant in the
conspiracy to commit plunder,” based on the idea the he has the “sole and exclusive
control over his PDAF allocation.”

“Even assuming that Napoles was the one who conceived the scheme, the fact is, it was
Estrada who was in control of his PDAF and not accused Napoles,” the court said,
relaying the prosecution’s stance.
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Estrada is accused of plunder, after allegedly pocketing part of his Priority

Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) when he allocated P183 million to fake non-
government organizations set-up by Napoles.

Other former Senators Bong Revilla and Juan Ponce Enrile were also charged with
plunder during the previous administration for PDAF-related cases. Revilla was
acquitted in December 2018, while Enrile’s trial is ongoing before the Sandiganbayan’s
Third Division. /jpv

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FOREIGN

Facebook says it got no

reports of New Zealand
mass shooting livestream
Associated Press / 07:12 PM March 19, 2019

Fifty pairs of white shoes line up as a memorial to the victims of Friday March 15 mass
mosque shootings in front of a church in Christchurch, New Zealand, Tuesday, March
19, 2019. Four days after Friday’s attack, New Zealand’s deadliest shooting in modern
history, relatives were anxiously waiting for word on when they can bury their loved
ones. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand — Facebook said Tuesday it received no reports of

the video of the Christchurch mosque attacks while it was being live-streamed by the
gunman.

Chris Sonderby, vice president and deputy general counsel at Facebook, said “no users
reported the video during the live broadcast,” which was viewed fewer than 200 times.
”

Sonderby said in a blog post that Facebook removed the video “within minutes” of
being contacted by police, and it was watched about 4,000 times in total before being
taken down. He also said Facebook removed 1.5 million videos of the attacks in the 24
hours after the event.
Social media companies rely on the public to report objectionable comment. Facebook
has come under fire after video of the shootings spread rapidly on the internet.

Meanwhile, police in New Zealand said they have completed autopsies on all 50
victims of last week’s mosque shootings, and have formally identified 12 of them. Six
of the identified victims have been returned to their families.

Four days after the attack, relatives were anxiously waiting Tuesday for word on when
they can bury their loved ones.

Islamic tradition calls for bodies to be cleansed and buried as soon as possible after
death, usually within 24 hours. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has said authorities hope
to release all the bodies by Wednesday, and police have said authorities are working
with pathologists and coroners to complete the task as soon as they can.

Police said in a statement that their “absolute priority is to get this right and ensure that
no mistakes are made.” /kga

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Drug supplier to celebrities,

models killed in buy-bust
By: Jaymee T. Gamil - Reporter / @jgamilINQ
Philippine Daily Inquirer / 05:02 AM March 13, 2019

An alleged bigtime party drugs supplier in Metro Manila who counted celebrities and
models among his clients was killed during a buy-bust operation on Monday night.
The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said that Steve “John” Pasion
pulled out a gun and then grabbed the firearm of one of its agents, prompting other
agents to shoot him.
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At that time, the 31-year-old Pasion was being arrested in the parking lot of his
condominium unit at Barangay 310 in Sta. Cruz, Manila, following the buy-bust
operation.

PDEA agents also placed under arrest his live-in partner, Irene “Sophie” Mercado, who
was with him.

Pasion, a franchise owner of a popular Chinese restaurant, counted among his clients
several celebrities and models, Levi Ortiz, PDEA Special Enforcement Services acting
director, said in a press conference on Tuesday.

High-profile clients

Two of these celebrities — a man and a woman — were now being monitored by
PDEA after Pasion’s cell phone showed text messages reportedly detailing their
transactions with him.

“They’re high-profile, always appearing on TV,” Ortiz said of the celebrities, one of
whom was found to have ordered from Pasion 200 ecstasy tablets.

Seized from Pasion were 15 tablets of suspected ecstasy worth P30,000, “shabu”
(crystal meth) valued at P300,000 and sachets of suspected cocaine.

Imported drug warehouse

Also recovered from his condominum unit, which according to PDEA was being used
as a “warehouse” for imported drugs, were a kilo of shabu worth P6 million, three
bottles of liquid ecstasy worth P75,000 and other drug paraphernalia.
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PDEA’s operation on Monday was a followup to the one its agents conducted on Feb. 8
in a condominium unit on Tomas Morato Avenue at Barangay Kristong Hari in Quezon
City.

Part-time models Billy Joe Kakilala and Ronnie M. Toribio were arrested at that time,
along with event organizer Abby Forteza Oban.

The three were reportedly party drugs dealers in Metro Manila. During questioning,
Toribio pointed to Pasion as his narcotics supplier, Ortiz said.

Seized from the three suspects were narcotics similar to those being sold by Pasion: 100
pieces of suspected ecstasy tablets that were in packets like candies, 750 ml of
suspected liquid ecstasy, 20 g of suspected shabu and a gram of suspected cocaine in a
sachet.

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Iranian couple arrested

after marriage proposal in
public
Associated Press / 08:26 PM March 11, 2019

TEHRAN, Iran — A young Iranian couple have been arrested after a marriage proposal
in public that was captured on a video clip that went viral on social media.

Police said the pair offended Islamic mores on public decency but were later released
on bail.
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The video, which spread on social media last Friday, shows the young man standing in
a heart-shaped ring of flower petals next to colorful balloons in a mall in the central
Iranian city of Arak.

He proposes, and after the young woman says “yes,” he slips a ring on her finger to
cheers from a crowd of onlookers. The two were not identified.

Mostafa Norouzi, deputy police chief in Arak, told the Shahrvand daily that it is
unacceptable for the young “to do whatever is common in other places of the world and
disregard mores, culture and religion” in Iran.

The pair’s “offense is very clear and there is no need for explanation” about the reason
for their arrest, Norouzi added.

Lawyer Isa Amini, head of the Tehran Bar Association, criticized the arrest and said he
could not understand what the grounds were for such an action since the couple did not
commit any wrongdoing.

However, the semi-official and hard-line Fars news agency called the public proposal
“shameful” and claimed it could promote “immorality.” The agency demanded “harsh”
punishment to stop such displays from being repeated by others.

Iranian hard-liners perceive public displays of affection as result of allegedly corrupt

influence of Western culture that threatens morals in this conservative Islamic society.
The Islamic Republic’s strict rules forbid gender mixing in public. /kga

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