Verdict against ex-Imelda aide set next year – PCGG

MANILA, Philippines - The sentencing of a former secretary of Imelda Marcos, who was found guilty of art theft and other charges by a US court, is scheduled on Jan. 6 next year, officials said yesterday.

Andres Bautista, chairman of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), said Vilma Bautista, 75, could be sentenced to 25 years in jail.

A New York jury convicted last week Ms. Bautista, who is not related to the PCGG chief, for conspiring to sell a Monet painting that vanished after the 1986 EDSA Revolution.

The artworks, which include Claude Monet’s 1899 painting “Le Bassin aux Nympheas,” were acquired by the former first lady during her husband’s presidency.

This particular Monet painting, which Bautista sold in September 2010 for $32 million, is part of the artist’s “Water Lilies” series.

The PCGG chief told reporters last week they are preparing a civil case against Mrs. Marcos’ former aide.

“We will be working to recover the proceeds and assets which were confiscated from Ms. Bautista and which we asserted to be owned by the Republic,” the PCGG chief said.

These include the proceeds from the sale of the Monet painting, bank deposits amounting to $15 billion, an apartment worth $3.9 million and three unsold paintings worth millions of dollars, he said.

He said they would try to recover the Monet from the current owner, Alan Howard, who is based in Switzerland, as well as the three other paintings, which were seized by the Manhattan district attorney from Ms. Bautista.