Abra clan faces raps for ill-gotten wealth
The former Abra town employee who had filed plunder complaints against members of the Luna clan has come out anew to allege that they have amassed ill-gotten wealth, which supposedly include a Porsche, a Hummer, a BMW, a gas station, and a mansion.
Bernadine Joson, who used to be the municipal planning and development officer of Lagayan, Abra, filed a supplemental complaint before the Office of the Ombudsman yesterday where she listed the houses, vehicles and other properties allegedly belonging to Cecilia Seares Luna and Jendricks Luna but were not proportionate to their income as public officials.
Joson earlier filed a plunder, graft and technical malversation complaint against the Lunas, consisting of Cecilia, a former lawmaker and former Lagayan Mayor, her son Jendricks who is a village captain and former Lagayan mayor, and her daughter Lara, the incumbent vice mayor.
Also included in the complaint were Lagayan Mayor Purificacion Paingan; municipal treasurer Marissa Donato; municipal accountant Meno Dickenson; and municipal engineer Osborne Dolaoen.
In her supplemental complaint, Joson alleged that the Porsche was new and was a gift of Jendricks to Cecilia on her 58th birthday. It was presented to her last March at the Bangued town plaza, she added.
She said the wealth of the Lunas, save for the bank accounts, could be easily verified.
“Respondents used the coffers of Lagayan to amass ill-gotten wealth for themselves and their family, treating government funds intended for the people of the municipality as if it were their family’s personal treasure,” she said.
Cecilia allegedly amassed her riches when she was town mayor from 1998 to 2007, and Abra representative from 2007 to 2010, “which properties she could not have acquired solely from her income as a public officer,” Joson said.
Jendricks, on the other hand, allegedly amassed the properties when he was Lagayan mayor from 2007 to 2010 and as an incumbent barangay captain, she added.
According to Joson, the other properties allegedly registered in the name of the Lunas or their representatives also include an emission testing center, a water refilling station, a Phoenix gas station, the Ryjel Hotel, the Chingwenpingyang Shipping Lines, the Drickslie construction firm, the Hacienda Jen in Abra, a resort, a feeds and yellow corn depot, and houses in Quezon City and Abra.
Also allegedly included in the Josons’ assets are bank accounts in Metrobank and Banco de Oro.
As for their vehicles, these supposedly also include a Porsche, BMW, Hummer, Expedition, Fortuner, bullet-proof van, a Starex Van, a Nissan escapade, an Infiniti, a Ford pick-up, and several others.
“Given the wealth amassed by the respondents while they were and are in control of government and governance in Lagayan and their obvious lack of means to legitimately or legally accumulate such wealth, the presumption arises that they accumulated such ill-gotten wealth,” Joson said.
She also asked the Office of the Ombudsman to suspend the respondents in her complaint who are incumbent public officials, in order to prevent them from destroying evidence.
Joson earlier said she decided to file the criminal complaints against the Lunas and other town officials after Jendricks accused her of fabricating a resolution that called for the replacement of the municipal treasurer.
She also said she had learned of the alleged shenanigans of the town officials when she was asked to prepare ghost payrolls, and saw that municipal employees were not being given their benefits and allowances.
