Been there, done that: Jinggoy's first plunder case revisited

MANILA, Philippines - When Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales filed the plunder raps before the Sandiganbayan against Janet Lim-Napoles, and senators Jinggoy Estrada, Ramon "Bong" Revilla Jr., and Juan Ponce-Enrile, Jinggoy said he is "used" to being jailed.

He knows what he is talking about.

Some 13 years ago, Jinggoy, who then served as San Juan mayor, had also been charged with plunder - along with his father then deposed president Joseph Estrada -  for alllegedly amassing P4 billion in jueteng  and excise tax kickbacks, and stock manipulation, among others.

While undergoing trial, Jinggoy was detained with his father at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center  as plunder is a capital offense and is non-bailable.

During his detention, Jinggoy had suffered a number of illnesses including heart condition, bleeding rectum, and an enlarged prostate, among others.

There was however an incident when the hidden camera of ABS-CBN television show Mission X caught Jinggoy drinking, gambling, and  smoking with his friends outside his detention room at the VMMC.

Despite however, testimonies and pieces of eveidence presented in court to support the charge sheet againt Jinggoy, he was eventually allowed to post bail by the Sandiganbayan Special Division on March 6, 2003.  `

Following his release from detention, Jinggoy was elected as a senator in 2004, and had since then been a member of the minority bloc. 

When the court finally issued its decision on the  plunder case in September 2007, Jinggoy was cleared of plunder, while his father was convicted of the offense.