Napoles children post bail

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Sandiganbayan on Friday, June 20, granted the petition for bail of the two children of alleged pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim Napoles who face graft charges before the anti-graft court.

The court’s 3rd division ordered Jo Christine and James Christopher Napoles to post a bail bond of P450,000 (about $10,000) each, court insiders said.

Accompanied by former employees of their mother, the two were able to post bail in the Sandiganbayan shortly before 5pm. 

The Napoles children also earlier asked the court to defer the issuance of arrest warrants and suspend proceedings against them.

Watch this report below.

They told the court that the allegations hurled against them are “inexistent and unsupported by any evidence other than the testimonies which came from very polluted sources.”

Because of their lifestyle, Napoles’ children have been linked to the biggest corruption scandal in the country in recent years. Napoles’ youngest daughter Jeane, who lives abroad, was in her early 20s when she bought a luxurious, Los Angeles apartment in a building where Hollywood celebrities and public figures live. She eventually sold the property. (READ: Napoles daughter owns P80-M LA property).

The graft charges against her two siblings are based on affidavits of former Napoles employees-turned-whistleblowers, who divulged details about the intricate scam that has rocked the nation. (READ: Why the Napoles children are co-accused in the pork barrel scam)

According to the affidavits of the whistleblowers submitted to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), the children were heavily involved in the scam, specifically in the pocketing of P900 million ($20.5 million) worth of government money from the highly discretionary Malampaya fund that was meant for victims of Typhoon Ondoy and Pepeng. Specifically, the special fund was intended to help farmers who lost their livelihood due to the natural calamities. – Rappler.com