T

he Attorney General'€™s Office (AGO) said death row convict Mary Jane Veloso may not escape executions despite new evidence presented in a related drug-trafficking trial in Manila.

AGO spokesperson Tony Spontana said the office had reminded the Philippine government that the trial on Maria Kristina Sergio, who allegedly recruited Veloso and gave her the bag that contained the heroin found by police at Adisucipto airport in Yogyakarta, may not lift Veloso'€™s death row sentence.

He suggested Veloso to propose again for clemency to President Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo, as it was a more effective way to grant her freedom.

'€œShe can propose again for clemency since such proposal is not limited. Then the decision is in President Jokowi'€™s hands,'€ he said on Saturday as quoted by tempo.co.

Veloso was sentenced to death for smuggling 2.6 kilograms of heroin in 2010. Her execution had been scheduled, along with nine other convicts, for April 28, but she was exempted in the final hours after Sergio turned herself in and admitted to recruiting her to transport the drugs.

The Philippine government later made a plea to save her on the grounds that Veloso would be presented as a witness in Sergio'€™s case.

Tony said even if there was a new evidence overturning Veloso'€™s verdict, she was no longer eligible to request a case review. The Supreme Court has already decided on two case reviews she petitioned earlier, which is the maximum number.