MANILA – Datu Andal Uy Ampatuan Jr. was found guilty on 21 counts of graft by the Sandiganbayan’s Sixth Division on Thursday, November 23.
The court, in a 96-page decision, ruled that Ampatuan violated the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
For each count of graft, Ampatuan has been sentenced to a prison term ranging from six years and one month to 10 years.
Ampatuan, who was found guilty in 2019 for the Maguindanao massacre killings, is also perpetually disqualification from public office.
The conviction stems from a finding of conspiracy to commit graft in the awarding of contracts for fuel purchases to Shariff Aguak Petron Station. The court highlighted the absence of a public bidding process and the subsequent release of public funds without complete delivery of the purchased goods.
According to the court’s decision, Shariff Aguak Petron Station billed the Maguindanao government for 1.41 million liters of Petron Diesel in 2008. However, Petron Corporation records revealed a delivery of only 618,000 liters of diesel fuel to Ampatuan Jr.’s Petron station in the same year.
The court emphasized that even if there was leftover fuel from 2007, the station could have delivered a maximum of 649,000 liters. A Special Audit Team investigation also discovered that none of the road rehabilitation projects linked to these transactions were completed.
Ampatuan Jr. argued that the prosecution failed to establish his involvement in the transactions, asserting a lack of evidence indicating his authorization or signature on related documents.
