Imelda Marcos Seeking Deal to Return Home
Making her first visit to Los Angeles since she was acquitted of fraud and racketeering charges in July, former Philippine First Lady Imelda Marcos said Thursday that she is seeking a settlement with the Philippine government that would allow her to return to her homeland.
President Corazon Aquino’s government has filed a civil suit in Los Angeles federal court, seeking to recover some of the estimated $5 billion the government claims was looted from its Treasury by the Marcos regime.
“Right now, talks are going on about this case, whether it should proceed or not,” Marcos, 61, said before a speech Thursday evening to supporters in Carson.
She said she had rejected earlier suggestions of a settlement because of the criminal charges pending against her.
Her acquittal in New York federal court provided the vindication she said she needed before discussing a settlement. “Now that the verdict is in, that’s good money. That’s clean money,” she told more than 600 loyalists at a rally at the Carson Community Center.
Marcos and her late husband, Ferdinand E. Marcos, fled the Philippines in 1986 after the government was toppled.
“Now that the country is in dire need of funds, I offer to share whatever wealth or resources I have with the Filipino people,” the former First Lady said Thursday.
Los Angeles Philippine Consulate spokesman Roy Gorre said his government has not ruled out the possibility of a settlement.
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