Former Anakalusugan party-list representative Mike Defensor and businessman Joseph Espiritu file a petition for bail before the Sandiganbayan Third Division in connection with a plunder case carrying an alleged amount of P75 million. The case links the complainant’s allegations to a campaign donation associated with Senator Rodante Marcoleta, who is named as their co-accused in the matter.
According to reporting from GMA News Online and Inquirer.net, Defensor and Espiritu seek temporary freedom while the case proceeds. Inquirer.net says the petition is filed on the basis that they are entitled to bail, and that it is submitted several weeks after the pair previously manifested in open court before the Third Division that they would not file such a motion.
The sources both describe the filing as a procedural step in the plunder case, with the petition presented to media as a written request for court action on their request for bail. The reports do not indicate the Sandiganbayan’s decision at the time of publication.
