NAPOLES SURRENDERS. Mugshot of Janet Lim Napoles. Graphic by Emil Mercado
MANILA, Philippines – The two week-long manhunt for fugitive and pork barrel queen Janet Lim Napoles came to a close when she surrendered to President Benigno Aquino III Wednesday night, August 28.
The surrender came shortly after President Aquino announced a P10-million bounty for her arrest.
Napoles was brought to Camp Crame, headquarters of the Philippine National Police. Her brother, Reynald “Jojo” Lim remains at large.
The timeline below traces the series of events that culminated in Napoles’ surrender.
July 12, Friday – The alleged multi-billion pork barrel scam is exposed by the Philippine Daily Inquirer. Whistleblower Benhur Luy identifies relative and previous employer Janet Lim Napoles as the mastermind behind the scam involving at least 5 senators and 23 congressmen and the siphoning of millions of pesos for ghost projects through their PDAF.
July 15, Monday – Justice Secretary Leila de Lima issues an Immigration Lookout Bulletin on the Napoles siblings to monitor their international travels.
July 16, Tuesday – Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales creates a 6-person team of investigators to conduct parallel investigations with the National Bureau of Investigation to look into the ghost projects funded through the misuse of pork barrel funds.
July 17, Wednesday – Through a statement read by her lawyer at a press conference, Napoles denies her involvement in the misuse of the Priority Development Assistance Fund, or pork barrel.
July 18, Thursday – Benhur Luy is placed under the Witness Protection Program.
July 25, Thursday – Photos obtained by Rappler show Janet Lim Napoles partying with Senators Jinggoy Estrada and Bong Revilla and their families.
LET’S PARTY. Janet Lim-Napoles, left (standing), rubs elbows with senators Jinggoy Estrada and Bong Revilla in this photo taken during a party in Estrada’s favorite hangout in San Juan. The man second from right is businessman Jaime Dichaves, who has owned to the Jose Velarde account initially linked to former President Joseph Estrada.
July 26, Friday – The blog of Jean Napoles, daughter of Janet Lim Napoles, exposing the family’s lavish lifestyle goes viral including a video of her extravagant 21st birthday party in Berverly Hills, CA.
July 31, Wednesday – A Rappler investigation reveals that Jean Napoles is the listed owner of an P80-million luxury apartment in Los Angeles, CA.
POSH LIVING. Online records show Jeane Napoles is the listed owner of a luxury apartment in the Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles. Photo from Ritz-Carlton website
August 1, Thursday – The Napoles camp sends Rappler a letter threatening to sue the company for the “inaccurate, reckless and unfair articles” on the Jean Napoles’ lavish lifestyle.
August 5, Monday – In a unanimous decision, the Senate says they will not conduct a probe into the multi-billion pork barrel scam for now.
August 5, Monday – The minority bloc of the House of Representatives, led by Minority Leader and San Juan City Rep, Ronaldo Zamora files a resolution to probe into the alleged misuses of pork barrel funds.
August 7, Wednesday – A Rappler investigative report shows that Janet Napoles learned the tricks of the trade in the military where she cut a P3.8- million deal on Kevlar helmets which was later declared anomalous by the Sandiganbayan.
August 8, Thursday – The eldest daughter of Janet Lim Napoles, Jo-Christine, abandons her hopes of joining Congress as she withdraws her nomination as the second representative for the OFW Family party list.
August 8, Thursday – A Rappler exclusive reveals that the Napoleses own 3 other properties in California with a total networth of P415.1 million or US$9.5 million.
NAPOLES FAMILY PROPERTIES. US-based properties of the Napoles family are worth up to P415-M. Photo collage by Rappler
August 13, Friday – Former Marine Col Ariel Querubin comes forward and reveals to Rappler a tragic past involving a pyramid scam by Napoles that caused his wife’s depression.
August 14, Wednesday – Makati Regional Trial Court branch 150 orders the arrest of Janet Lim Napoles and her brother Reynald “Jojo” Lim for the illegal detention of whistleblower Benhur Luy.
August 14, Wednesday – Another Rappler investigative report reveals that the sons of Napoles and Senator Revilla are business partners, based on Securities and Exchange Commission records.
August 15, Thursday – The NBI urges the Napoles siblings to surrender. More than 12 hours since the issuance of the arrest warrants the siblings are nowhere to be found and the manhunt continues.
FIND HER. Justice Secretary Leila de Lima orders a nationwide manhunt for Janet Lim Napoles and her brother. File photo by AFP
August 15, Thursday – A Rappler investigation reveals that the 2012 net profit of Napoles’ officially registered businesses in the Securities and Exchange Commision totaled less than P1 million.
August 16, Friday – Napoles’ lawyers asks the Court of Appeals to stop the implementation of the arrest warrant against her clients by filing an application for temporary restraining order.
August 16, Friday – The Court of Appeals orders the freezing of the accounts of Napoles, her family, relatives, and staff. The freeze order is effective for 6 months and covers a total of 415 accounts linked to Napoles.
August 16, Friday – The Commission on Audit special report on how the PDAF was used from 2007-2009 reveals that P6.156 billion went to 82 NGOs, 10 of which were linked to Napoles and received P2.1 billion in pork.
August 17, Saturday – The Department of Foreign Affairs cancels the passports of the Janet Lim Napoles and brother Reynald.
August 17, Saturday – The COA report reveals that senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Jinggoy Estrada, and Bong Revilla are patrons to the many dubious NGOs controlled by Napoles.
SUKI TO NAPOLES. The COA report shows that senators Jinggoy Estrada, Juan Ponce Enrile, and Bong Revilla were patrons of Napoles NGOs. Graphic by Rappler
August 20, Tuesday – The Senate backtracks on its earlier statement on the pork probe. Sen TG Guingona, chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, announces that they will launch a formal probe into the multi-billion pork barrel scam.
August 20, Tuesday – President Aquino says he has ordered the Inter-Agency Anti-Graft Coordinating Council to probe the PDAF scam. The investigating council consists of the Ombudsman, the Department of Justice, and the Commission on Audit.
August 21, Wednesday – Rappler reveals that Monsignor Josefino Ramirez, a retired priest from the Archdiocese of Manila, is the listed tenant of Janet Lim Napoles’ home in the exclusive Forbes Park Village in Makati.
NAPOLES FRIEND. Monsignor Josefino Ramirez admits knowing Janet Lim-Napoles and working with the family. Photo from Ramirez’s Facebook fan page
August 26, Monday – At least 80,000 to 100,000 angry netizens and citizens join the #millionpeoplemarch at Luneta Park in the country’s first-ever social media-organized protest against the pork barrel.
August 27, Tuesday – Napoles sues Rappler reporter Natashya Gutierrez along with 6 others from other publications. Napoles is asking Gutierrez for P10 million in damages and attorney’s fees.
August 28, Wednesday – President Aquino announces a P10-million reward for anyone who has information that could lead authorities to Napoles and her brother Reynald “Jojo” Lim.
August 28, Wednesday – The Court of Appeals does not issue a TRO for the arrest warrant against the Napoles siblings. Instead, the court asks all parties in the case to comment on a petition by the Napoleses to stop their arrest
August 28, Wednesday – At 9:37 Napoles surrenders to President Aquino in Malacañang. Aquino turns her over to the custody of Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas and Philippine National Police Director Alan Purisima. Napoles spends the night in Camp Crame. headquarters of the Philippine National Police.
SPECIAL TREATMENT?: Janet Lim Napoles surrenders to President Aquino. Malacañang photo
August 29, Thursday morning – Netizens react to the surrender of Napoles. Many wonder who will receive the P10 million reward.
August 29, Thursday afternoon – The Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 150 issues a commitment order to Napoles, paving the way for her impending transfer to the Makati City jail.
August 29, late Thursday afternoon – The Napoles camp asks the Makati court to stop the transfer of Napoles to the Makati jail.
NAPOLES SURRENDERS. Mugshot taken earlier today. Photo from the Philippine National Police– Rappler.com
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