Former Iloilo provincial administrator Manuel Mejorada was arrested by National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents Monday morning over cyber libel charges filed against him by Sen. Franklin Drilon in 2016 and 2017.
According to his partner Ruby, Mejorada was arrested at 9:20 a.m. by NBI agents.
"He wasn't able to say goodbye and he asked me to post this message for him," his partner Ruby said on Mejorada's Facebook account.
Mejorada, who has been accused of peddling disinformation online, claimed in 2014 that Drilon was behind alleged irregularities surrounding the construction of the Iloilo Convention Center, which he said was overpriced by P488 million.
The former Iloilo official posted online a lot of accusations against the senator.
However, he had admitted to the Senate that he has no evidence to prove officials conspired to overprice the project and benefit from it.
Last January 25, 2021 the, RTC Branch 118 in Pasay City convicted Mejorada on four counts of cyber libel, and a warrant of arrest was issued against him.
Mejorada was sentenced to a prison term of at least two years and five months to a maximum of four years and five months.
— Report from Rolen Escaniel
FROM THE ARCHIVES