Napoles ready to stand trial on plunder, graft cases

MANILA, Philippines – Janet Lim-Napoles is ready to testify when her trial for one count of plunder and 11 counts of graft starts before the Sandiganbayan.

Her lawyers have submitted their pre-trial brief before the Fifth Division, but no date has been set for the trial.

Sen. Jinggoy Estrada is her co-accused in these cases.

Napoles will be the first to testify among the 55 witnesses that her lawyers will present.

They include her co-accused and nephew Ronald John Lim and driver John Raymond de Asis, who are still at large despite the  warrants of arrest issued against them.

Officials of non-government organizations involved in the case and allegedly under the control of Napoles are also on the list of witnesses.

Defense lawyers also intend to present investigators and representatives of the National Bureau of Investigation, Commission on Audit, the Office of the Ombudsman’s Field Investigation Office and the Anti-Money Laundering Council.

They have also listed in the pre-trial brief 95 documents that they propose to present during the trial.