Mayor Busted! San Simon Mayor Nabbed in P80-M Bribery Sting — Caught with P30M in Cold Cash

4 days ago

1 min read

Manila, Philippines - San Simon Mayor Abundio “JP” Punsalan Jr. was caught red-handed in a dramatic entrapment operation after allegedly pocketing a whopping P30 million in bribe money from a private firm — the down payment of an alleged P80-million extortion racket.

NBI agents stormed a restaurant in Clark on Tuesday, where the mayor and his alleged bagman — a certain Dr. Ed Ryan Dimla a.k.a. “Doctor Yang” — were receiving the cash from Real Steel Corp., a company seeking a favorable resolution from the local government.

According to investigators, Punsalan had demanded P80 million — P30M upfront, and the rest in “installments.”

ARMED ENTOURAGE

Also collared were the mayor’s security men, who were caught carrying unlicensed firearms and live ammunition.Weapons are now being verified by authorities.

By 7:50 p.m., the group was hauled off to the NBI headquarters in Pasay. Graft charges are now being prepared under the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (RA 3019) and other possible criminal violations.

NOT HIS FIRST RODEO

This isn’t Punsalan’s first brush with the law.

Just last June, he was slapped with a 60-day suspension over an administrative case involving alleged abuse of power, misconduct, and violation of RA 3019. In 2023, he and several town officials were also suspended over land reclassification issues. In 2021 and 2020, he faced multiple suspensions linked to a shady land deal near the municipal hall.