Napoles owns more than 200 lots in Heritage Park
Jane Lim-Napoles. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines – Janet Lim-Napoles, the alleged mastermind behind the P10 billion pork barrel scam, owns an estimated 3,000 square meters of “lawn and estate lots” in the upscale Heritage Park in Taguig City, according to an insider privy to the sale of the lots.
It was at the Heritage memorial park that Napoles, who is now detained at a police training camp in Laguna, surrendered President Aquino III’s spokesman, Edwin Lacierda, last August 28.
“The lots were under different names, but it was Ms Napoles who paid for 200 lawn lots and eight family estate lots,’’ said the source, who spoke to the Philippine Daily Inquirer on condition of anonymity.
“She bought all the adjacent lots of her mother’s mausoleum because, she said, she wants space for catering and tents when they celebrate the death anniversary, birthday and All Souls Day of her mother,” the source said.
The source said the Lim mausoleum was where Magdalena Luy Lim, the mother of Napoles, is buried.
“It is complete with the amenities and furnishings of a high-end condominium unit,” the source added.
The two-story dark grey mausoleum became a “tourist spot” after news about Napoles came out, the source added.
“Madami nagpapicture [A lot of people have had their pictures taken], especially now,” the source said.
The lowest price for a lawn lot at Heritage Park is P95,000 for 1.2 square meters while a family estate lawn costs P4.6 million for 4.9 square meters.
“The worth of Napoles lots alone could reach around P30 million, but the cost of the construction of the mausoleum we do not know,” the source said.
The source added that government people who claimed they were with the Commission on Audit had also visited the mausoleum.
“For the past four years, at least three times a year, they hold a party, complete with 24-hour catering and air-conditioned tents,” the source said of the Napoleses. “Usually the party preparations begin on October 30 and the party lasts three days until November1. They are festive, costume parties; the kids are given chocolate and candies.”
“There were nuns and lots of people arriving and going during the celebration, plenty of cars,” the source added.
Emy, an ice cream vendor who claimed she supplied the ice cream for Napoles every Nov. 1, showed up Friday at the Masouleom, but was turned away by a man named Marco, because “walang party ngayon [there’s no party today]”.
“I saw the news on but I came just the same, hoping to make a sale, but Marco told me there was no party today,” she said. “Madame Jenny, who was good to us, paid us P6,000 for the ice cream and P1,000 tip,” Emy told the Inquirer.
A member of a family with relatives buried nearby told the Inquirer that “we kind of missed the funfare, because they even had a stage there once and some concert, plus free food”.
“We did not know who she was. We were told when we asked that the owner was a Chinese businesswoman very closed to Erap [nickname of former President Joseph Estrada],” this source added.
Two men were guarding the mausoleum when Inquirer visited the place on Friday.
The Inquirer learned that a Mass was held Friday morning and Napoles’ husband, Jimmy, and siblings were there, but left after the Mass.
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