A SENIOR lawmaker on Tuesday filed criminal charges for cyberlibel and libel against lawyer Levitio Baligod, 18 individuals identified as former porters of a disgraced congressman, and radio station dwSI 864 over allegations that he received luggage filled with cash, which he described as false and malicious.
In a complaint-affidavit submitted before the Manila City Prosecutor’s Office, Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr. asked that the respondents be charged for cyberlibel under Article 355 in relation to Article 353 of the Revised Penal Code and the Cybercrime Prevention Act or, alternatively, libel under the Revised Penal Code.
Named respondents include Belnard Tube, Rosebert Waupan, Benny Bulontate, Johnny Buduan, Rodante Orbillo, Reyneboy Julian, Christopher Esquivel, George Villalon Jr., Romeo Rommel Bobares, Gil Navidad Jr., Anselmo Taberdo, Joely Cadiao, Rommel Galapon, Cecilio Larroder Jr., Bernard Gumban, Crisanie Dado, Fidel Corpuz, and Walter Manalansan.
Also included in the complaint is radio station dwSI 864, owned and operated by Swara Sug Media Corporation-the same company behind Sonshine Media Network International (SMNI)-which allegedly disseminated the statements through its Facebook page and other platforms.
The complaint stemmed from the publication of an unsigned and unnotarized ‘Pinagsamang Sinumpaang Salaysay’ dated February 23, 2026, which supposedly claimed that Abante and other lawmakers received public funds delivered in cash-filled luggage.
‘For the record, I vehemently deny the incorrect, baseless, and/or misleading allegations made by the complainants in the libelous salaysay distributed and made known to the media and public during the libelous press conference and thereafter published on respondent dwSI’s Facebook page through the libelous post,’ Abante said in his affidavit.
Abante, in his affidavit, strongly denied the allegations, saying they were ‘incorrect, baseless, and misleading’ and were widely circulated during a February 24 news conference.
‘The respondents falsely insinuated that I [among others] received luggage containing cash from public funds. These allegations are entirely false, maliciously fabricated, and without any basis in fact or law,’ Abante said.
The affidavit further stated that the group claimed around P805 billion in public funds was distributed in luggage to several individuals, which Abante dismissed as implausible and intended to inflame public outrage.
He also criticized the respondents for allegedly airing the accusations publicly instead of first bringing them before proper legal authorities.
‘Clearly, the mention of P805 billion is only to incite further outrage from the public and not to reveal supposed truths,’ he said.
Abante argued that the respondents chose to publicly air their allegations instead of bringing them first before the proper authorities.
The lawmaker added that discrepancies between the unsigned document presented during the news conference and a later notarized affidavit filed before the Office of the Ombudsman further undermined the credibility of the allegations.
He also noted a reported admission by Baligod that the inclusion of Party-list Rep. Leila de Lima of Mamamayang Liberal in the earlier document may have been an ‘oversight,’ calling it evidence of inconsistency and bad faith.
Abante said the accusations lacked essential details such as specific dates, places, and circumstances of the alleged cash delivery, arguing that the claims were unsupported by evidence.
‘This discrepancy all the more exposes their malicious intent and recognition of the original’s falsity, forcing revision before swearing to its contents under oath,’ Abante said.
‘This blatant vacillation not only shreds their credibility but also cements the tale as malicious fiction,’ he said.
Abante said the allegations failed to provide specific dates, places, or circumstances supporting the claims.
‘Significantly, the allegations lack any specific date or circumstance of the claimed delivery and receipt, while photographs show only cash, luggage, and strangers, establishing nothing. Coupled with their groundless tale, this amounts to nothing more than smoke and mirrors slander,’ he said.
The complaint also cited statements made during a June 4 proceeding described by Abante as a Senate Blue-Ribbon committee hearing led by senators aligned with former Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano.
According to Abante, this constituted a ‘fresh and separate publication’ of the same allegedly defamatory claims, showing a continuing pattern of malicious intent.
He further argued that the respondents deliberately circulated an unsigned and unnotarized document despite having legal remedies available, calling it a ‘trial by publicity’ intended to damage his reputation and influence public perception.
The complaint seeks the filing of appropriate charges and any other cases prosecutors may find warranted based on the evidence presented.
As this developed, Sen. Erwin Tulfo filed a complaint for grave oral defamation against three former bodyguards of former Party-list Rep. Zaldy Co of Ako Bicol over allegations aired during a June 4 news conference at the Senate linking him to alleged cash deliveries and human-trafficking activities.
In a 13-page complaint-affidavit filed on Monday, Tulfo asked the Pasay City Prosecutor’s Office to indict Bernard Gumban, Rosebert Waupan and Benny Bulontate for grave oral defamation under Article 358 of the Revised Penal Code, in relation to Section 6 of Republic Act 10175, or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
Tulfo said the respondents made the statements during what he described as an irregular Senate proceeding that was streamed live on social media and later amplified through news reports, interviews and online commentaries.
He said the June 4 activity was held despite a prior notice postponing and resetting the Blue-Ribbon committee hearing to a later date, and following the June 3 shift in Senate majority leadership that led to the election of a new committee chairperson.
Tulfo said Gumban accused him during the proceeding of receiving luggage allegedly containing millions of pesos in cash.
‘These malicious accusations against my person was elicited through the questioning of former SP [Senate President] Alan Cayetano on why the name of Senator Erwin Tulfo was included in the Complaint-Affidavit,’ Tulfo said.
He denied receiving illegal money from Co or any other person.
‘I have never authorized, facilitated, or benefited from any flood-control project or from any illegal transaction,’ Tulfo said in his complaint.
Tulfo described the allegations as ‘fantastic and outright lies,’ arguing that Gumban could not even categorically state the specific address of his alleged house in Greenhills, while details regarding the size of the luggage and the amount of money it supposedly contained were inconsistent.
He said the accusations caused him ‘public ridicule, contempt, scorn, suspicion, and humiliation’ and damaged his reputation as a senator, public servant, broadcaster and family man.
The complaint also cited statements made by Waupan and Bulontate, who allegedly implicated Tulfo in human trafficking-related activities involving women supposedly brought to him at hotels.
Tulfo, likewise, denied the allegations, saying the statements were baseless and malicious.
‘I vehemently deny that such engagements ever occurred and took place at any given time and on any of those mentioned places,’ he said.
Tulfo said the respondents should not use privilege or immunity as a shield because the June 4 proceeding was not a duly constituted Blue Ribbon committee hearing and was held outside what he described as proper legislative processes.
He said the statements were made despite the pendency of their own submissions before the Office of the Ombudsman, where the allegations could have been tested through the proper legal process.
Tulfo said the public airing of the allegations inflicted substantial injustice on his reputation and standing in the community.
The complaint-affidavit also sought the filing of the corresponding information in court against the three respondents.