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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Visayas devider Sandiganbayan dismisses graft case vs DILG Usec Mabilog

Sandiganbayan dismisses graft case vs DILG Usec Mabilog

Published Aug 15, 2026 06:41 pm
DILG Undersecretary Jed Patrick Mabilog. (BFP Calabarzon)
DILG Undersecretary Jed Patrick Mabilog. (BFP Calabarzon)
ILOILO CITY—The Sandiganbayan has dismissed a graft case against Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Undersecretary Jed Patrick Mabilog.
The Sandiganbayan 3rd Division dismissed the graft case over the alleged anomalous towing contract entered into during Mabilog’s term as mayor of Iloilo City in 2015.
The resolution dated August 12, 2026 granted Mabilog’s October 2024 motion to quash the graft case.
In a 25-page decision obtained by Manila Bulletin, the Sandiganbayan ruled there was “inordinate delay” by the Office of the Ombudsman to file a case against Mabilog.
Specifically, it took nearly seven years for the Ombudsman to file a graft case from the period it received a complaint against Mabilog.
According to the Sandiganbayan, “Mabilog’s constitutional right to speedy disposition of cases has been violated” by the Ombudsman.
The Sandiganbayan case stemmed from a towing contract awarded by the Iloilo City government to 3L Towering Services, a firm that Mabilog and former city councilor Plaridel Nava II allegedly had a stake in.
Mabilog had many legal battles as Iloilo City mayor during the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte, who constantly accused Mabilog as a major drug protector.
In 2017, the Ombudsman issued a perpetual disqualification against Mabilog when the then mayor was found guilty of serious dishonesty and grave misconduct on his alleged unexplained wealth that Duterte linked to the illegal drug trade.
The Ombudsman ruling would be reversed when Mabilog was granted presidential pardon by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. last January 2025.
It was in September 2024 when Mabilog returned to the country from the United States, where he sought asylum in 2017 after the constant death threats from Duterte.
Mabilog welcomed the Sandiganbayan’s decision.
“At the end of the day, the Truth will always prevail. God is good all the time. God loves and protects the innocent and punishes the guilty,” Mabilog said in a statement on Friday, August 14.
Mabilog thanked Iloilo City Rep. Julienne “JamJam” Baronda, Land Transportation Office (LTO) OIC for Negros Island Jeck Conlu, and Ariel “Aye” Castañeda Sr.

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