A MAKATI regional trial court sentenced Janet Lim Napoles, who had been tagged as the pork barrel queen, to life imprisonment for the illegal detention of her former employee Benhur Luy.
Judge Elmo Alameda of Makati RTC branch 150 also ordered Napoles to pay Luy P50,000 in moral damages and another P50,000 in civil damages.
Napoles and her brother Reynald Lim allegedly detained Luy for three months in her house in Magallanes Village, Makati City in 2012.
Luy claimed Napoles was her aunt, and that he was locked up because he was being prevented from revealing Napoles’ connection to the pork barrel anomalies which he termed as her “dirty business”.
Luy’s camp thanked the court for its decision.
In his decision, Judge Alameda said Luy’s testimony as well as those of the other witnesses were credible.
Napoles’ lawyers said they would appeal Alameda’s decision.
Alameda’s court issued the commitment order for Napoles at around 5 p.m.
The Makati court also instructed Napoles’ custodian to transfer her to the women’s correctional facility in Mandaluyong City from Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig where she is presently detained.
Authorities are still looking for Napoles’ co-accused in the case, her brother Reynald Lim.
Napoles is also accused with plunder in connection with the multi-billion peso pork barrel scam. Detained senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada and Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., are Napoles’ co-accused in the plunder case where Luy had served as whistleblower and witness. (Eagle News Service with a report from Meane Corvera)
