Social media personality Franco Mabanta and four associates have been released on bail following their arrest in an alleged extortion plot targeting former Speaker Martin Romualdez.
The Pasig Regional Trial Court Branch 167 ordered their release on Saturday after each posted bail of P120,000. Mabanta and the others were arrested on May 5 during a National Bureau of Investigation entrapment operation.
The four co-accused are PGMN finance officer Ericson James Pacaba, incorporator John Alexander Vasquez Gomez, and employees Jardine Christian Requio Serrano and Franco Jose Gallardo. They had been held at the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City.
Mabanta denied the extortion attempt while in custody and called the operation a setup. Romualdez stated through a spokesperson that the group was twisting the narrative and should submit any materials to authorities rather than use them for leverage.
