Senator Dick Gordon has urged the Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigations to intensify the manhunt for the alleged financier of the syndicate that has defrauded the government of P8.7 billion in road right of way (RROW) payments.
During the recent hearing of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, Gordon, committee chairman, flashed photos of Nelson Ti and urged the law enforcement groups to exert effort in locating him.
“I am urging the PNP and the NBI to intensify your search for Nelson Ti, who is said to be the financier of the syndicate behind the road right of way scam. He is wanted for multiple charges and several warrants of arrest have been issued against him,” the seasoned legislator said.
The veteran lawmaker made the call after Ti continued to ignore the Blue Ribbon’s summons to attend the hearings.
“We have sent him several invitations but he continues to ignore them. He has a lot to answer for in our investigation into the RROW payment scam,” the senator said.
“We have sent him several invitations but he continues to ignore them. He has a lot to answer for in our investigation into the RROW payment scam.”
Ti had been tagged as the financier who provides the funds for the advance payments to RROW claimants and to finance the processing of their claims. He is said to be a close friend of Eldon Cruz, husband of former President Benigno Aquino III’s sister, Maria Elena or “Ballsy.”
The modus operandi of the syndicate involve the claiming for just RROW compensation which are intended for rightful owners who were affected by the construction of a national highway in General Santos City.
The modus operandi of the syndicate were to claim for just compensation of Road Right of Way which are intended for rightful owners who were affected by national highway construction at General Santos City.
The Right-of-Way Act mandates government to provide just compensation for landowners whose properties were or will be used or will be affected by national infrastructure projects, such as the building of roads.
During the Senate investigation, Gordon exposed the syndicate’s modus operandi of submitting fake land titles which had already cost the government P255.55 million in RROW compensation for nine parcels of land in General Santos City. The veteran senator also presented a table which showed that the sizes of the parcels of land covered by the titles that the claimants have allegedly submitted and which the Land Registration Authority have certified to be authentic and genuine, had their values padded several times over. The alleged properties were also located in areas away from the locations indicated in the titles.
