De Lima files complaint vs prosecutors over drug cases

Rep. Leila de Lima has filed a complaint with the Department of Justice (DOJ) seeking an investigation into prosecutors who handled her drug cases, citing grave misconduct and gross ignorance of the law.

De Lima alleges that these prosecutors pursued fabricated and politically motivated cases against her, which made her endure abuse and injustice for over seven years.

Her complaint stems from a motion for reconsideration filed by 10 prosecutors in an attempt to reverse her acquittal in a drug case, which she believes damaged the integrity of the DOJ.

The drug charges against her were anchored on the fabricated testimony of former Bureau of Corrections officer-in-charge Rafael Ragos, who later recanted his testimony.

De Lima stated that 'there must be a reckoning for those who abused their authority, manipulated the prosecutorial process, and orchestrated this flagrant perversion of the law.'

The complaint specifically names Provincial Prosecutor Ramoncito Bienvenido Ocampo Jr. and other panel members who signed the motion, though the motion did not bear the signature of Prosecutor General Richard Fadullon.

While De Lima was acquitted in 2024 after nearly seven years in jail, the Court of Appeals had remanded the case to the lower court, prompting the motion for reconsideration.

The DOJ Secretary ordered the withdrawal of the motion for reconsideration after the presiding judge stood by his decision to acquit De Lima.