G.R. No. 235480, January 27, 2021.
FACTS:
In 2013, following Benhur Luy’s (Luy) rescue from his alleged illegal detention by Napoles and the latter’s brother, by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents, Luy executed an affidavit confirming the allegations regarding the PDAF scam. The Field Investigation Office (FIO) of the Office of the Ombudsman (Ombudsman) likewise conducted a parallel fact-finding investigation.
Thereafter, NBI and the FIO filed their respective complaints against those involved in the complex scheme. Then Undersecretary Mario L. Relampagos (Relampagos) and his staff were indicted by the Ombudsman for violations of Articles 210, 212, and 217 (Malversation) of the RPC and violations of Section 3(b), (e), (g), and (h) and Section 4 of RA 3019, as amended, and RA 6713.
After the preliminary investigation, the Ombudsman found probable cause against petitioners for two (2) counts of violation of Section 3(e) of RA 3019, as amended, and two (2) counts of Malversation under the RPC. The Ombudsman indicted the petitioners of facilitating with “undue haste” the processing of the Special Allotment Release Orders (SAROs) and Notice of Cash Allocations (NCAs) pertaining to Cagas’ PDAF allocation.