Former Mindoro Occidental Rep. Jose Villarosa was found guilty by the Sandiganbayan First Division yesterday of nine counts of graft for the anomalous issuance of extraction permits to different individuals and companies and sentenced to 90 years in prison.
Villarosa was convicted of violating Section 3(e) of Republic Act 3019, also known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and Section 138 of RA 7160 or the Local Government Code which states that “only governors are allowed to issue extraction permits within their “respective territorial jurisdiction and to levy and collect taxes therefrom.”
The Sandiganbayan said Villarosa violated the law when he allowed private quarry companies to take advantage of the privilege to extract quarry resources without legal authority from the Occidental Mindoro provincial governor’s office from December 2010 to June 2011. (Czarina Nicole O. Ong)