MANILA — The wife of former lawmaker Mike Defensor has denied any connection to an establishment recently raided by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), rejecting allegations linking her and her daughter to the operation.

In a statement sent to reporters, Julie Defensor described the accusations as a targeted attack against their family.

“Let me be absolutely clear regarding the recent NBI operation: we have absolutely no connection to the targeted establishment or its operations. Any attempt to link our family to the abhorrent acts allegedly committed there is a deliberate, dangerous, and desperate lie,” Defensor said.

She said the allegations were part of what she described as a coordinated effort to damage their reputation.

“The motive behind this orchestrated smear campaign is painfully obvious. This is a fabricated pretext designed to artificially manufacture a case, with the chilling goal of filing unwarranted, unbailable charges against me and my daughter,” she added.

Julie Defensor also claimed that what she called a “relentless pattern of harassment” has affected workers tied to businesses associated with their family, saying about 1,000 employees lost their jobs.

According to her, the workers were dismissed due to their perceived link to her husband.

“These are 1,000 families stripped of their livelihoods in the middle of a crisis. It is unconscionable that innocent workers are being sacrificed as pawns in someone else’s political vendetta,” she said.

On April 24, the NBI filed complaints for alleged violations of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act and the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act against the wife and son of former lawmaker Mike Defensor before the Pasig City Prosecutor’s Office.

The cases stemmed from a raid conducted on April 21 at an establishment in Pasig City suspected of being involved in human trafficking activities.

Authorities said the operation, led by the NBI Special Task Group, was prompted by reports of sexual exploitation and illegal recruitment, resulting in the rescue of 54 women and the arrest of several individuals.

Investigators alleged that sexual services were being sold for between P5,000 and P15,000, with earnings reportedly shared among managers and facilitators.

During the raid, authorities also recovered marked money, business documents, and suspected illegal drugs and paraphernalia.

The NBI said corporate records list the establishment under the names of Defensor’s wife and child, though it clarified that this does not automatically establish liability and remains part of an ongoing investigation.

In a separate development in March, Mike Defensor was mentioned in relation to a Commission on Elections recommendation to file complaints over alleged undisclosed campaign donations involving Sen. Rodante Marcoleta.

He was also previously linked to a February allegation involving individuals claiming to be former military personnel who said they transported alleged bribe money for former lawmaker Zaldy Co.