Woman charged for vote buying in Navotas

MANILA, Philippines — Charges have been filed against the woman who was arrested for vote buying in Navotas City, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said.

Maribel Policarpio will face charges for violating the Omnibus Election Code provisions against vote-buying and vote-selling.

According to the Navotas City Commission on Elections (Comelec) office, a local tabloid reported on an alleged ongoing vote buying at an old building in Barangay San Jose, allegedly organized by Policarpio, on Oct. 25.

Policarpio was allegedly caught in the act of distributing white envelopes containing P300 to registered voters of Barangay Longos in Malabon City.

Authorities also discovered from the suspect photocopies of voters’ identification cards, as well as other documents indicating the names, precincts and relevant voters’ information.

The Navotas City Comelec, represented by lawyer Gregorio Bonifacio, officially filed a complaint against Policarpio on Oct. 26.

According to the DOJ, the Navatos City prosecutor’s office issued a resolution stating that it found probable cause to charge Policarpio with vote-buying based on the recovered pieces of evidence against her.

The charges against Policarpio have been filed before the Navotas City regional trial court.