MANILA, Philippines — National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Melvin Matibag has clarified that the marked money, part of the P75 million used in the arrest of social media personality and Peanut Gallery Media Network (PGMN) founder Franco Mabanta, came from the NBI’s confidential funds, not from former House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
Matibag made the remark in response to Atty. Rowena Guanzon’s recent Facebook post questioning how Romualdez allegedly released P75 million in cash if his assets were frozen.
“I thought Martin Looter King (Romualdez)’s money and assets were frozen? How did he get P75 million out in suitcases? Literally, suitcases of money. What are you talking about, coins only?” Guanzon wrote in Filipino.
Romualdez recently filed a complaint before the NBI against Mabanta for allegedly attempting to extort up to P350 million from him in exchange for not releasing an alleged “exposé video” that would supposedly link him to corruption in the House of Representatives.
READ: Socmed personality Franco Mabanta nabbed for Martin Romualdez extort try
In an ambush interview on Thursday, Matibag said many people on social media are not real lawyers but are acting like ones, while some real lawyers “don’t understand law enforcement.”
“Atty. Guanzon, she’s a lawyer, a competent lawyer, what did she say? She said, where did he get P75 million? Isn’t the account frozen? Who is playing politics now?” Matibag said in Filipino.
The NBI director reiterated that out of the P75 million entrapment money, only P50,000 was real cash provided by the NBI.
The boodle money was made in Recto, Manila, he added.
“That’s why law enforcement agencies have intelligence funds and confidential funds for use in such operations. The complainant’s group did not release any money in this case,” he said.
“And the Supreme Court has already ruled that it can be used. It’s called boodle because it is not real money but looks like real money. The NBI provided it,” he added. “So now, she (Guanzon) is looking for the P75 million. I hope she thinks first. Is it practical for the P75 million to be embargoed by the court while the case is ongoing?”
READ: NBI to appeal for law to regulate socmed, separate ‘fake’ journalists
During the entrapment operation on Tuesday evening, NBI agents posed as Romualdez’s representatives, carrying three luggage bags of mixed marked and boodle money amounting to P75 million, which served as the first tranche of the transaction.
The agents met with Mabanta at The Manila Peninsula Hotel in Makati City around 5:30 p.m., where he allegedly instructed them to deliver the money at Valle Verde Country Club to a certain “Jimmy,” later identified as Jardine Christian Requio Serrano, an employee of PGMN and one of his co-accused.
After the delivery, Serrano and another PGMN employee, Franco Jose Gallardo, brought the money to a function room inside the club, where Mabanta, PGMN Finance Officer Ericson James Pacaba, and PGMN Incorporator John Alexander Gomez were waiting.
Following their arrest on Tuesday evening, Mabanta and the four others have been detained at the NBI detention facility in Muntinlupa City since 6 p.m. on Thursday.
Matibag said they are awaiting a resolution from the Pasig City Regional Trial Court, adding that recommended bail will be set for Mabanta and the others in the alleged robbery extortion case in relation to the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
“If they will post bail, we are obligated to release Franco Mabanta and all the others, provided there are no other cases pending in any court,” he added.
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Your subscription has been successful.
The bail amount has not yet been disclosed as of this writing. /mcm
