Court grants Jinggoy Estrada’s request for knee check-up

Former Senator Jinggoy Estrada. AP

The Sandiganbayan Fifth Division on Monday granted the request of former Senator Jinggoy Estrada for furlough so he can undergo an x-ray and MRI of his left knee.

In open court, the justices granted Estrada’s request for a knee check-up on Tuesday, over the opposition of the prosecution.

The court allowed the police to accompany Estrada for an X-ray and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of his left knee at Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan city.

The court required Estrada to meet the usual conditions, such as shouldering the expenses to be incurred by the police during his check-up.

In his urgent motion, Estrada appealed to the court to allow him a check-up after he complained of pain on his left knee, which worsens when he is seated.

READ: Jinggoy Estrada seeks court nod for knee examination

Estrada cited the previous cases when he was allowed a hospital check-ups, such as when he was allowed to undergo therapy sessions due to a frozen shoulder.

“Considering accused’s health issues, there is a need for him to undergo immediate X-ray and MRI of his left knee as recommended (by his doctor),” Estrada said in his motion through his lawyers.

Estrada is accused of plunder for allegedly receiving P183 million kickbacks from his Priority Development Assistance Funds which were allegedly spent in ghost projects through the bogus foundations of accused mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles.

He was denied bail, and remains in police custody with co-accused Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr. at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center.

Another accused, the elderly Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile was allowed by the Supreme Court to post bail for humanitarian considerations.

Estrada was also accused of 11 counts of graft for violating Section 3(e) of the anti-graft law for allegedly causing injury to government and giving undue preference to Napoles’ bogus foundations to implement his ghost pork barrel projects. JE/rga