Published December 12, 2020, 2:24 PM
The Sandiganbayan Fourth Division has acquitted former Santiago City, Isabela Mayor Amelita S. Navarro and General Services Officer Martha A. Pascual of their graft charge involving a P1.79-million firearms purchase in 2010.
Navarro was charged with a violation of Section 3(e) of Republic Act 3019, also known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, together with Pascual and former Government Department Head Orestes S. Ferrer, over the purchase of 15 Armalite rifles worth P1,790,626.50 from Trust Trade, a firearms trader, even without undergoing public bidding on Jan. 8, 2010.
They purchased the firearms without first seeking authority from the city council.