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Exposed Contents vs. Estrada May Be Used in Perjury
The contents of the controversial Equitable-PCI bank envelope may be used in the perjury case to be filed against ex-president Joseph Estrada, Ombudsman Aniano Desierto said Wednesday.
Among others, the envelope contained a letter from businessman and Estrada pal Jaime Dichavez requesting the bank to open a savings and current account at the PCI-Juan Luna Binondo branch. It was dated a day before the Velarde account was opened.
To recall, it was Dichavez who claimed the ownership of the Jose Velarde account while the impeachment trial was ongoing.
Meanwhile, lawyer Romeo Capulong said that the letter was highly suspicious because it had no letter head. He noted the letter appeared to have been done in haste.
The controversial second envelope was opened Wednesday morning at the office of Senate President Aquilino Pimentel. Besides the Ombudsman and Pimentel, present during the opening were Sen. Renato Cayetano and some PCI-Eqitable bank officials.
The exposed Equitable-PCI Bank documents revealed that large deposits and withdrawals have been done, some surpassing a million U.S. dollars under the name Jose Velarde.
The Jose Velarde account records run for several pages. The first deposit was made on August 27, 1999, in the amount of 200, 000 dollars and one of the largest about 7.5 million dollars came on October 28,1999.
Estrada declared assets of only 700,000 dollars in 1999.
On December 22 last year, Equitable-PCI Bank Vice President Clarissa Ocamo testified in the Senate, then sitting as Estrada impeachment tribunal, that she saw Estrada signed that name to an investment of 9.6 million dollars in the presidential palace.
Estrada's impeachment trial collapsed last month when Senate judges barred prosecutors from opening the very envelope, an unpopular decision triggering massive protests that brought down Estrada from the presidency.
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