The Sandiganbayan junked the appeal of two former officers of the defunct National Agribusiness Corporation (Nabcor) and proclaimed that their graft and malversation conviction was handed down in September.
Encarnita Munsod, a former human resources manager, and Romulo Relevo, a former head of the general services unit, were allegedly involved in the misappropriation of the late Teodulo Coquilla's congressional fund for the sole district of Eastern Samar in 2007 through the non-governmental organization Gabaymasa Development Foundation, Inc.
In a 12-page decision dated Dec. 12 and made public on Tuesday, the anti-graft court rejected the pair's pleas for reconsideration for lack of merit.
In the judgment from September 2, they were sentenced to up to 40 years in jail for "willingly" conspiring with Coquilla to steal money by implementing a fraudulent and nonexistent livelihood project.
Gabaymasa allegedly received PHP4.365 million from the lawmaker's Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) without a competitive process and despite being unaccredited and unqualified to carry out the projects, according to investigators.
According to the verdict, the two were responsible for the fraudulent acceptance and delivery reports, disbursement reports, project proposals, and other crucial papers that resulted in the illicit transfer of money from Nabcor to Gabaymasa.
Munsod, like Relevo, asserted that there was no proof of a plot and disputed that she had signed the distribution voucher.
The relevant arrest warrants had previously been issued by the court.
Nabcor's main business was the production of agricultural and livestock products.
After serving as a conduit for the erroneous distribution of PDAF allocations, it was discontinued in 2013.
