Defensor, Espiritu arrested hours after Marcoleta arrest

FORMER Anakalusugan representative Mike Defensor and businessmen Joseph Espiritu, who are both co-respondents of Senator Rodante Marcoleta in a plunder charge linked to P75-million campaign donations, were arrested on Monday, July 6, 2026. In a press conference, Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla said Defensor and Espiritu were arrested in a coffee shop in Quezon City hours after Marcoleta was nabbed Monday. They were brought for booking procedures to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) office in Camp Crame, Quezon City, where Marcoleta is currently undergoing pre-detention procedures.Defensor and Espiritu will be brought to the Quezon City Jail in Payatas where they were ordered committed by the Sandiganbayan third division. Marcoleta, on the other hand, will temporarily be brought to the Philippine National Police (PNP) General Hospital where he will undergo medical examination considering his age of 72. “He is now undergoing medical procedures, 72 na po si Senator Marcoleta. Hindi lang po simple blood pressure at heart beat ang kailangan gawin sa kanya. Marami pa po siyang test na pagdadaanan katulad ng mga ECG at iba pa para sigurado ang kanyang fitness. Hindi namin alam kung kailan matatapos yun but hopefully, within the next two days tapos na ang lahat ang kanyang examination para sa full health na irereport namin sa Sandiganbayan na maaari na siya puwede ilagay, maging PDL (person deprived of liberty) sa Quezon City Jail. Doon po ang kanyang confinement order sa Payatas,” said Remulla. (He is now undergoing medical procedures. Senator Marcoleta is already 72 years old. It's not enough to simply check his blood pressure and heart rate. He still has to undergo several tests, including an ECG and others, to ensure he is medically fit. We do not know yet when those procedures will be completed, but hopefully, all his examinations will be finished within the next two days. We will then submit a full medical report to the Sandiganbayan so it can determine that he is fit to be committed as a Person Deprived of Liberty (PDL) at the Quezon City Jail. His confinement order is at the Quezon City Jail in Payatas.)“‘Yung mugshot niya po ay ilalabas sa ilang sandali lang at marami pa po kasing pagdadaanan. I must remind everyone we are not here to humiliate anyone. Kung anuman ang kanyang kalagayan sa kanyang buhok ay hindi namin wawalanghiyain. (His mugshot will be released shortly, as there are still several procedures that need to be completed. I must remind everyone that we are not here to humiliate anyone. Whatever the condition of his hair may be, we will not subject him to humiliation). His picture will be taken as he appears in public. We are here to arrest him and have him tried but not to humiliate him. He still has his rights,” he added.In an interview following his arrest, Marcoleta vowed to respect the rule of law and the court processes. Marcoleta was arrested after filing a motion to quash the plunder charge against him at the Sandiganbayan. In a social media post, Defensor said that despite the charges, which aimed to silence them, the fight against corruption in the government will continue. “Kami na lumalaban sa korapsyon ang nauna pang makulong sa isang kasong walang batayan. Sa amin pong pagkakakulong ay hindi na po kami makakapagsalita sa korapsyon na ang gusto lang namin ay lumabas ang katotohanan, transparency, accountability and justice. Nauna pa kaming makulong kesa sa mga totoong nagnakaw sa kaban ng bayan. Makukulong n’yo kami at mapapatahimik pero hindi kami susuko,” he said. (We who are fighting corruption are the ones who were even the first to be imprisoned in a case that has no basis. With our detention, we will no longer be able to speak out against corruption, when all we want is for the truth, transparency, accountability, and justice to come out. We were jailed ahead of those who truly stole from the public coffers. You may imprison us and silence us, but we will not give up.)The case stemmed from Marcoleta's own public acknowledgment that he received P30 million from Defensor, P25 million from Espiritu, and P20 million from another businessman Aristotle Viray, although he maintains the donations were lawful and that the charges are politically motivated. The Office of the Ombudsman charged Marcoleta and the three others for one count of plunder each and for violating Presidential Decree 46, which prohibits public officials from accepting gifts in connection with their office. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)