Opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros charged with kidnapping, wiretapping

Allies of President Rodrigo Duterte filed a criminal complaint today at the Office of the Ombudsman against opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros on charges of wiretapping, kidnapping, and obstruction of justice.

The complaint is related to a privilege speech delivered by Hontiveros last Sept. 12 about a photo of Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II texting allies to expedite the filing of charges against Hontiveros.

Hontiveros had asked Aguirre to resign during that privilege speech.

According to GMA News, the complaint against Hontiveros was filed by former congressman Jacinto Paras, the person who Aguirre was caught texting in the Senate.

“Since she challenged us to file a case, we took it seriously and studied it,” Paras was quoted in the Inquirer.

Hontiveros is an ally of detained senator and staunch Duterte critic Leila de Lima.

De Lima, a former chair of the Commission on Human Rights and justice secretary, was arrested on drug trafficking charges last February.

She is accused by the Duterte administration of orchestrating a drug trafficking ring from inside the New Bilibid Prison between 2010 and 2015, during the presidency of Benigno Aquino III.