FACT CHECK: No order to seize ‘Marcos jewelry’ from Kris Aquino, Margarita Cojuangco

Claim: Jewelry presumably owned by the Marcos family and allegedly stolen by Kris Aquino and Margarita Cojuangco are being taken back.

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The claim was mentioned both in the video and in its title. The video also showed a photo of Kris Aquino wearing a necklace at the 3:15 timestamp, pointing out that it was the piece of jewelry the actress stole from the Marcos family. The Facebook video, posted on June 3, has gained 572,000 views, 19,000 reactions, and 5,500 shares from a page with 17,000 followers.

The bottom line: The Supreme Court (SC) in 2017 affirmed the Sandiganbayan’s ruling on the forfeiture of former First Lady Imelda Marcos’ Malacañang collection as it was declared ill-gotten. Section 2 of Republic Act No. 7080 states that “any and all ill-gotten wealth and their interests and other incomes and assets” are “forfeited in favor of the State.”

The SC resolution said that the former first lady and her daughter Irene Marcos-Araneta “failed to satisfactorily show that the properties were lawfully acquired.”

Parts of the Marcoses’ ill-gotten jewelry collection have remained in the vaults of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas for almost three decades. As of writing, there have been no orders to return the retrieved jewelry to the Marcoses.

Truth behind the jewelry in question: The photo of Kris Aquino wearing the allegedly stolen necklace was taken in 2016. At the time, false rumors that she stole the jewelry from the Marcoses already circulated. 

Kris Aquino herself had declared that the necklace she wore was made from cubic zirconia and silver, not diamonds. She also said that her necklace was from Bottega Veneta.

Rappler has published several fact-check stories about the Aquinos’ supposed theft from the Marcoses:

• HOAX: Marcos gold bars, jewelry ‘taken by Aquinos,’ opposition
• HOAX: Kris Aquino wears ‘Imelda Marcos’ necklace’
• FACT CHECK: Hindi ninakaw ni Kris Aquino ang mga alahas ni Imelda Marcos
• FACT CHECK: Marcos didn’t have 50-year gold time deposit

– Kyle Marcelino/Rappler.com

Kyle Marcelino is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.

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