MANILA — A Manila court Monday acquitted former Philippine first lady Imelda Marcos of 32 counts of illegal money transfers made 40 years ago, court officials said. The 78-year-old widow of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos smiled broadly as she walked from court, saying, “I am happy because the truth of the Marcoses is going to be justice.â€
Of the 901 cases filed against her in the early 1990s just 10 remain, her lawyers told AFP. Ferdinand Marcos, who ruled the Philippines for 20 years fled into exile in 1986 with his family after he was overthrown in a “people power†revolution led by the Roman Catholic Church and breakaway elements of the military.
At the time it was claimed he had milked the country of between five and 10 billion dollars. After a 22-year search for the so-called hidden Marcos wealth, the government has only managed to retrieve 683 million from several Swiss bank accounts. The latest case was filed in 1991 by the Philippine government and has taken 16 years to work its way through the country’s convoluted legal system.
The government’s case claimed that 32 bank transfers to foreign accounts in Switzerland between 1968 and 1976 were carried out illegally by Ferdinand Marcos, his wife and an associate who is now dead. But trial court judge Silvino Pampilo ruled that evidence provided by the government failed to prove Imelda Marcos broke the law. Lawyer for the Marcoses, Robert Sison, told AFP that it was illegal for individuals to move money overseas without the approval of the central bank.
He said the court dropped the case when the government failed to prove its case. “In fact the money was transferred by a close family friend Roberto Benedicto (who is deceased) and not Marcos,†he said. Ferdinand Marcos died in exile in Hawaii in 1989. His widow and her family returned to the Philippines in 1991 and were hit with hundreds of corruption cases. “With this case out of the way there are just 10 left,†Sison said. – AFP
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Topic: Imelda Cleared in 32 Bank Transfers (Read 1450 times)