Jamaine Punzalan

Mary Ann Maslog, a suspect in a P24-million textbook scam in 1998 who was presumed dead, attends Senate hearing on October 8, 2024. Mark Demayo, ABS-CBN News/File

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POGO HEARING

Jessie Cruzat

ABS-CBN News

<div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:560px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1884167962476830918&amp;lang=en&amp;maxWidth=560px&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com%2F%23%2Fworkspace%2Fmonitoring%3Fitem%3Durn%3Anewsml%3Aod2-workbench-api.abs-cbn.com%3A2025-01-28T09%3A16%3A17.717602%3Ae4380430-d063-400a-b990-fcb434565979%26action%3Dedit&amp;sessionId=ef6262ffa4a36c0ec6c13b5d1691b3787d5ad117&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&amp;width=550px" style="position:static;visibility:visible;width:413px;height:233px;display:block;flex-grow:1" data-tweet-id="1884167962476830918"></iframe></div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charSet="utf-8"></script><p>MANILA <strong>(UPDATE)</strong> — The Sandiganbayan on Tuesday convicted Mary Ann Maslog of graft in relation to the 1998 textbook scam graft case.</p><p>The anti-graft court found Maslog “guilty beyond reasonable doubt”, sentencing her to six to ten years in prison for violating Republic Act 3019, or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.  </p><p>The multi-million peso corruption scheme implicated officials from the then Department of Education, Culture, and Sports (DECS), now the Department of Education (DepEd).</p><p>Maslog had reportedly posed as an agent for a textbook publishing company.</p><p>On October 2020, Maslog’s co-accused, former DECS officials Emilia Aranas and Ernesto Guiang, were convicted and sentenced to ten years in prison.</p><p>Maslog, who uses the alias Dr. Jesica Sese Francisco, was set to be convicted in the case in 2019.</p><p>However, she was reported deceased at the time, allegedly to evade prosecution and conviction, as she fled to the United States.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/1/12/scam-suspect-maslog-accused-of-faking-own-death-denied-bail-again-1313">Scam suspect Maslog, accused of faking own death, denied bail again</a></div><p>Her return to the Philippines did not go unnoticed as she reportedly continued using the false identity until the real Jessica Francisco filed a complaint against her.</p><p>On September 25, 2024, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) arrested Maslog for her alleged involvement in an investment scam.</p><p>She had reportedly posed as a supplier of water systems and medicine for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).  </p><p>The National Bureau of Investigation also filed falsification of public documents and the Anti-Alias Law against her.</p><p>Meanwhile, The Sandiganbayan also addressed concerns about Maslog’s temporary release from the NBI detention facility on January 6, due to an alleged release order.</p><p>Maslog’s legal counsel Atty. Nicole Jamilla, however, denied having prior knowledge of the release order.</p><p>“The explanation was they received a copy of the released order and I think as individual who does not know the processes, she just relied on the documents. Pero as we speak, we have not seen the release order as of today so hindi rin namin alam,” said Jamilla.</p><p>The Sandiganbayan has ordered the NBI to submit a progress report to clarify the circumstances of the release.  </p><p>In line with her conviction, Maslog’s lawyer confirmed plans to file a motion for reconsideration to appeal the Sandiganbayan&#x27;s decision.</p><p>The Sandiganbayan ordered that Maslog be remained detained at the NBI facility in Muntinlupa City.  </p>

<p>The Sandiganbayan on Tuesday convicted Mary Ann Maslog of graft in relation to the 1998 textbook scam graft case.</p>

The Sandiganbayan on Tuesday convicted Mary Ann Maslog of graft in relation to the 1998 textbook scam graft case.

Mary Ann Maslog convicted of graft in textbook scam

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Mary Ann Maslog convicted of graft in textbook scam

Jessie Cruzat,

ABS-CBN News

Published January 28, 2025 05:20 PM PHT

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Updated January 28, 2025 10:19 PM PHT

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