REPUBLIC OF THE
SANDIGANBAYAN
---
SPECIAL DIVISION
PEOPLE OF THE
Plaintiff, For: PLUNDER
-
versus –
JOSEPH EJERCITO ESTRADA,
Former President of the
Republic of the
JOSE “JINGGOY” ESTRADA,
CHARLIE “ATONG” TIU HAY SY ANG,
EDWARD S. SERAPIO,
YOLANDA T. RICAFORTE, PRESENT:
ALMA ALFARO,
JOHN DOE also
known as LEONARDO-DE CASTRO, PJ, Chairperson
ELEUTERIO RAMOS TAN or MR. UY, VILLARUZ,
JR., and
JANE DOE also
known as PERALTA,
JJ.
DELIA RAJAS,
JOHN DOES and JANE DOES, PROMULGATED:
Accused.
September 12, 2007
x----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------x
DECISION
Republic
Act (RA) No. 7080 as amended was approved on July 12, 1991, creating and
introducing into our criminal legal system the crime of “plunder”. This law penalizes public officers who would
amass immense wealth through a series or combination of overt or criminal acts
described in the statute in violation of the public trust. RA No. 7080 or the Anti-Plunder Law was a
consolidation of Senate Bill no. 733 and House Bill No. 22752. The Explanatory Note of Senate Bill No. 733,
quoted in the case of Estrada v.
Sandiganbayan (G.R. No. 148965, February 26, 2002, 377 SCRA 538, 555),
explains the reason behind the law as follows:
Plunder,
a term chosen from other equally apt terminologies like kleptocracy and
economic treason, punishes the use of high office for personal enrichment,
committed thru a series of acts done not in the public eye but in stealth and
secrecy over a period of time, that may involve so many persons, here and
abroad, and which touch so many states and territorial units. The acts and/or omissions sought to be
penalized do not involve simple cases of malversation of public funds, bribery,
extortion, theft and graft but constitute plunder of an entire nation resulting
in material damage to the national economy.
The above-described crime does not yet exist in Philippine statute
books. Thus, the need to come up with a
legislation as a safeguard against the possible recurrence of the depravities
of the previous regime and as a deterrent to those with similar inclination to
succumb to the corrupting influence of power.
The
majority opinion in the above-cited case, penned by Honorable Justice
Josue N. Bellosillo, further explained
the rationale behind the Anti-Plunder Law in this manner:
Our nation has been racked by scandals of corruption and
obscene profligacy of officials in high places which have shaken its very
foundation. The anatomy of graft and
corruption has become more elaborate in the corridors of time as unscrupulous
people relentlessly contrive more and more ingenious ways to milk the coffers
of the government. Drastic and radical
measures are imperative to fight the increasingly sophisticated,
extraordinarily methodical and economically catastrophic looting of the
national treasury. Such is the Plunder Law,
especially designed to disentangle those ghastly tissues of grand-scale
corruption which, if left unchecked, will spread like a malignant tumor and
ultimately consume the moral and institutional fiber of our nation. The Plunder Law, indeed, is a living testament
to the will of the legislature to ultimately eradicate this scourge and thus
secure society against the avarice and other venalities in public office.
These
are times that try men’s souls. In the
checkered history of this nation, few issues of national importance can equal
the amount of interest and passion generated by petitioner’s ignominious fall
from the highest office, and his eventual prosecution and trial under a
virginal statute. This continuing saga
has driven a wedge of dissension among our people that may linger for a long
time. Only by responding to the clarion call for patriotism, to rise above
factionalism and prejudices, shall we emerge triumphant in the midst of
ferment. [Emphasis Supplied]
The
present case is the first of its kind to be filed charging the highest official
of the land, a former President, among others, of the offense of plunder. Needless to state, the resolution of this
case shall set significant historical and legal precedents.
Throughout
the six years over which the court proceedings in this case unfolded, this
Court confronted numerous novel and complicated legal issues (including the
constitutionality of the plunder law, propriety of house arrest, among others),
heard lengthy testimonies from several dozens of witnesses from both sides and
perused voluminous documentary evidence and pleadings from the parties. Considering the personalities involved and
the nature of the crime charged, the present case aroused particularly intense
interest from the public. Speculations
on the probable outcome of the case received unparalleled attention from the
media and other sectors of society.
Indeed, the factual and legal complexities of the case are further
compounded by attempts to sensationalize the proceedings for various ends.
However,
this Court is ever mindful of its imperative duty to act as an impartial
arbiter: (a) to serve the interest of the State and the public in punishing
those who would so severely abuse their public office and those private
individuals would aid them or conspire with them and (b) to protect the right
of the accused to be only convicted upon guilt proven beyond reasonable
doubt. Thus, the decision of this Court
follows, upon no other consideration other than the law and a review of the
evidence on record.
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
AND THE PROCEEDINGS
__________________________
This
case for plunder commenced with the filing on April 4, 2001 of the Information
which is quoted hereunder:
INFORMATION
The
undersigned Ombudsman Prosecutor and OIC-Director, EPIB, Office of the
Ombudsman, hereby accuses former Joseph Ejercito Estrada, together with Jose
“Jinggoy” Estrada, Charlie ‘Atong” Ang, Edward Serapio, Yolanda T. Ricaforte,
Alma Alfaro, Eleuterio Tan a.k.a. Eleuterio Ramos Tan or Mr. Uy, Jane Doe
a.k.a. Delia Rajas, and John & Jane Does, of the crime of Plunder, defined
and penalized under R.A. No. 7080, as amended by Sec. 12 of R.A. No. 7659,
committed as follows:
That
during the period from June, 1998 to January, 2001, in the Philippines, and
within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, accused Joseph Ejercito
Estrada, by himself and in conspiracy with his co-accused, business associates
and persons heretofore named, by taking advantage of his official position,
authority, connection or influence as President of the Republic of the
Philippines, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and criminally amass,
accumulate and acquire ill-gotten wealth, and unjustly enrich himself in the
aggregate amount of P4,097,804,173.17, more or less, through a combination and
series of overt and criminal acts, described as follows:
(a)
by
receiving, collecting, directly or indirectly, on many instances, so-called
“jueteng money” from gambling operators in connivance with co-accused Jose
‘Jinggoy’ Estrada, Yolanda T. Ricaforte and Edward Serapio, as witnessed by
Gov. Luis ‘Chavit’ Singson, among other witnesses, in the aggregate amount of
FIVE HUNDRED FORTY-FIVE MILLION PESOS (P545,000,000.00), more or less, in
consideration of their protection from arrest or interference by law enforcers
in their illegal “jueteng” activities; and
(b)
by
misappropriating, converting and miusing for his gain and benefit public fund
in the amount of ONE HUNDRRED THIRTY MILLION PESOS (P130,000,000.00), more or
less, representing a portion of the One Hundred Seventy Million Pesos
(P170,000,000.00) tobacco excise tax share allocated for the Province of Ilocos
Sur under R.A. No. 7171, in conspiracy with co-accused Charlie ‘Atong’ Ang,
Alma Alfaro, Eleuterio Tan a.k.a Eleuterio Ramos Tan or Mr. Uy, and Jane Doe
a.k.a. Delia Rajas, as witnessed by Gov. Luis ‘Chavit’ Singson, among other
witnesses; and
(c)
by
directing, ordering and compelling the Government Service Insurance System
(GSIS) and the Social Security System (SSS) to purchase and buy a combined
total of 681,733,000 shares of stock of the Belle Corporatiion in the aggregate
gross value of One Billion Eight Hundred Forty-Seven Million Five Hundred
Seventy Eight Thousand Fifty Seven Pesos and Fifty Centavos
(P1,847,578,057.50), for the purpose of collecting for his personal gain and
benefit, as in fact he did collect and receive the sum of ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY
NINE MILLION SEVEN HUNDRED THOUSAND PESOS (P 189,700,000.00), as commission
from said stock purchase; and
(d)
by
unjustly enriching himself in the amount of THREE BILLION TWO HUNDRED THIRTY
THREE MILLION ONE HUNDRED FOUR THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY THREE PESOS AND
SEVENTEEN CENTAVOS (P 3,233,104,173.17) comprising his unexplained wealth
acquired, accumulated and amassed by him under his account name “Jose Velarde”
with Equitable PCI Bank;
to the damage and prejudice of the
Filipino people and the Republic of the
CONTRARY
TO LAW.
Various
motions were filed by accused Former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada (FPres.
Estrada), Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada (Jinggoy Estrada), and Edward
In a Resolution promulgated on April 16, 2001, the
Court directed the prosecution to submit to the Court not later than April 18,
2001 the required affidavits, counter-affidavits, and supporting evidence as
well as other supporting documents accompanying the Information, which were
needed to determine the existence of probable cause for the issuance or
non-issuance of a warrant of arrest. As
directed, the prosecution filed on April 18, 2001 its Manifestation and
Compliance.
On
April 19, 2001, the prosecution filed an Urgent Ex-Parte Motion to admit
Amended Information, which is quoted hereunder:
AMENDED INFORMATION
The
undersigned Ombudsman Prosecutor and OIC-Director, EPIB, Office of the
Ombudsman, hereby accuses former PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPPINES, Joseph
Ejercito Estrada a.k.a. “ASIONG SALONGA” AND a.k.a. “JOSE VELARDE”,
together with Jose ‘Jinggoy’ Estrada, Charlie “Atong” Ang, Edward Serapio,
Yolanda T. Ricaforte, Alma Alfaro, JOHN DOE a.k.a. Eleuterio Tan OR
Eleuterio Ramos Tan or Mr. Uy, Jane Doe a.k.a. Delia Rajas, and John DOES
& Jane Does, of the crime of Plunder, defined and penalized under R.A. No.
7080, as amended by Sec. 12 of R.A. No. 7659, committed as follows:
That during the period from June,
1998 to January, 2001, in the Philippines, and within the jurisdiction of this
Honorable Court, accused Joseph Ejercito Estrada, THEN A PUBLIC OFFICER,
BEING THEN THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES, by himself AND/OR
in CONNIVANCE/CONSPIRACY with his co-accused, WHO ARE MEMBERS OF
HIS FAMILY, RELATIVES BY AFFINITY OR CONSANGUINITY, BUSINESS ASSOCIATES,
SUBORDINATES AND/OR OTHER PERSONS, BY TAKING UNDUE ADVANTAGE OF HIS OFFICIAL
POSITION, AUTHORITY, RELATIONSHIP, CONNECTION, OR INFLUENCE, did then and
there willfully, unlawfully and criminally amass, accumulate and acquire BY
HIMSELF, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, ill-gotten wealth in the aggregate amount OR
TOTAL VALUE of FOUR BILLION NINETY SEVEN MILLION EIGHT HUNDRED FOUR
THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY THREE PESOS AND SEVENTEEN CENTAVOS
[P4,097,804,173.17], more or less, THEREBY UNJUSTLY ENRICHING HIMSELF OR
THEMSELVES AT THE EXPENSE AND TO THE DAMAGE OF THE FILIPINO PEOPLE AND THE
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES, through ANY OR A combination OR A
series of overt OR criminal acts, OR SIMILAR SCHEMES OR MEANS,
described as follows:
(a)
by
receiving OR collecting, directly or indirectly, on SEVERAL
INSTANCES, MONEY IN THE AGGREGATE AMOUNT OF FIVE HUNDRED FORTY-FIVE MILLION
PESOS (P545,000,000.00), MORE OR LESS, FROM ILLEGAL GAMBLING IN THE FORM OF
GIFT, SHARE, PERCENTAGE, KICKBACK OR ANY FORM OF PECUNIARY BENEFIT, BY HIMSELF
AND/OR in connivance with co-accused CHARLIE ‘ATONG’ ANG, JOSE
‘Jinggoy’ Estrada, Yolanda T. Ricaforte, Edward Serapio, AND JOHN DOES AND
JANE DOES, in consideration OF TOLERATION OR PROTECTION OF ILLEGAL
GAMBLING;
(b)
by
DIVERTING, RECEIVING, misappropriating,
converting OR misusing DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, for HIS OR THEIR PERSONAL gain and
benefit, public funds in the amount of ONE HUNDRED THIRTY MILLION PESOS
[P130,000,000.00], more or less, representing a portion of the TWO HUNDRED
MILLION PESOS [P200,000,000.00] tobacco excise tax share allocated for the Province
of Ilocos Sur under R.A. No. 7171, BY HIMSELF AND/OR in CONNIVANCE
with co-accused Charlie ‘Atong’ Ang, Alma Alfaro, JOHN DOE a.k.a. Eleuterio
Tan OR Eleuterio Ramos Tan or Mr. Uy, and Jane Doe a.k.a. Delia Rajas, AND
OTHER JOHN DOES AND JANE DOES;
(c)
by
directing, ordering and compelling, FOR HIS PERSONAL GAIN AND BENEFIT,
the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) TO PURCHASE, 351,878,000
SHARES OF STOCKS, MORE OR LESS, and the Social Security System (SSS), 329,855,000
SHARES OF STOCK, MORE OR LESS, OF THE BELLE CORPORATION IN THE AMOUNT OF MORE
OR LESS ONE BILLION ONE HUNDRED TWO MILLION NINE HUNDRED SIXTY FIVE THOUSAND
SIX HUNDRED SEVEN PESOS AND FIFTY CENTAVOS [P1,102,965,607.50] AND MORE OR LESS
SEVEN HUNDRED FORTY FOUR MILLION SIX HUNDRED TWELVE THOUSAND AND FOUR HUNDRED
FIFTY PESOS [P744,612,450.00], RESPECTIVELY, OR A TOTAL OF MORE OR LESS ONE
BILLION EIGHT HUNDRED FORTY SEVEN MILLION FIVE HUNDRED SEVENTY EIGHT THOUSAND
FIFTY SEVEN PESOS AND FIFTY CENTAVOS [P1,847,578,057.50]; AND BY COLLECTING OR
RECEIVING, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, BY HIMSELF AND/OR IN CONNIVANCE WITH JOHN
DOES AND JANE DOES, COMMISSIONS OR PERCENTAGES BY REASON OF SAID PURCHASES OF
SHARES OF STOCK IN THE AMOUNT OF ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY NINE MILLION SEVEN HUNDRED
THOUSAND PESOS [P189,700,000.00], MORE OR LESS, FROM THE BELLE CORPORATION
WHICH BECAME PART OF THE DEPOSIT IN THE EQUITABLE-PCI BANK UNDER THE ACCOUNT
NAME “JOSE VELARDE”;
(d)
by
unjustly enriching himself FROM COMMISSIONS, GIFTS, SHARES, PERCENTAGES,
KICKBACKS, OR ANY FORM OF PECUNIARY BENEFITS, IN CONNIVANCE WITH JOHN DOES AND
JANE DOES, in the amount of MORE OR LESS THREE BILLION TWO HNDRED
THIRTY THREE MILLION ONE HUNDRED FOUR THOUSAND AND ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY THREE
PESOS AND SEVENTEEN CENTAVOS [P3,233,104,173.17] AND DEPOSITING THE SAME
UNDER HIS ACCOUNT NAME “JOSE VELARDE” AT THE EQUITABLE-PCI BANK.
CONTRARY TO LAW.
On
April 20, 2001, the Court in its Minute Resolution granted and admitted the
prosecution’s Urgent Ex-Parte Motion to Admit Amended Information dated April
18, 2001.
On April 25, 2001, the Court promulgated its Resolution
which stated:
Xxx xxx xxx the
Court finds and so hold that probable cause for the offense of PLUNDER exists
to justify issuance of warrants for the arrest of accused Former President
Joseph Ejercito Estrada, Mayor Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada, Charlie “Atong” Ang,
Edward Serapio, Yolanda T. Ricaforte, Alma Alfaro, John Doe a.k.a. Eleuterio
Tan or Eleuterio Ramos Tan or Mr. Uy, and Jane Doe a.k.a. Delia Rajas.
No bail is fixed for the provisional
liberty of the accused for the reason that the penalty imposable for the
offense of plunder under RA No. 7080, as amended by Sec. 12 of RA No. 7659, is reclusion perpetua to death.
Director General Leandro R. Mendoza,
Chief of the Philippine National Police, shall implement the warrant of arrest
upon service to him by Mr. Edgardo A. Urieta, Chief of the Sheriff and Security
Services Division of the Sandiganbayan.
Once arrested, all the accused shall undergo the required processes and
be detained at the PNP
On the 25th day of April 2001, on the basis
of the said resolution, the Court issued an Order of Arrest and Hold Departure
Order for all the named accused in the present information. The Philippine National Police (PNP) submittd
its Report of Compliance dated April 25, 2001 which stated:
1.
That
in compliance with the Order of Arrest issued by the Honorable Court in the
above captioned criminal case, accused Joseph E. Estrada and Jose “Jinggoy”
Estrada, both residence of no. 1 Polk Street, North Greenhills, San Juan, Metro
Manila voluntarily surrendered to the undersigned on 25 April 2001 at about
3:00 o’clock PM at said residence in the presence of their counsels.
2. That
right after their surrender, they were brought inside Camp Crame, Quezon City
for the required processes and pending further orders from this Honorable Court
they shall be kept in Camp Crame;
A Compliance/Return of Warrant of Arrest was also
filed on April 26, 2001 by P/Chief Superintendent Nestor B. Gualberto.
As to accused Serapio, the PNP’s Report of Compliance
reads in part:
2. That
one of the accused named therein, Atty. Edward S. Serapio, surrendered to the
Chief, Philippine National Police, through the Criminal Investigation and
Detection Group (CIDG) in Camp Crame, Quezon City on April 25, 2001 at about
9:45 PM where the required processes were administered to him and pending
further orders from this Honorable Court he shall be kept in Camp Crame;
The Court, in its Minute Resolution dated April 26,
2001, set the arraignment of the detained accused on May 3, 2001 which was
cancelled due to the different motions filed by the accused. Accused Jinggoy Estrada filed his Motion to
Quash or Suspend dated April 24, 2001 and a Very Urgent Omnibus Motion dated
April 30, 2001. Among other motions, accused
FPres. Estrada filed his Motion to Quash dated June 7, 2001 and accused Serapio
filed his Motion to Quash (Re: Amended Information dated April 18, 2001) dated
June 26, 2001. In its Resolution dated July
9, 2001, the Court denied all the aforesaid motions to quash and accused
Jinggoy Estrada’s Very Urgent Omnibus Motion dated April 30, 2001. The Court’s Resolution dated July 9, 2001 was
sustained by the Honorable Supreme Court in the Decisions rendered in Joseph
Ejercito Estrada vs. Sandiganbayan (G.R. No. 148560, November 19, 2001) and
Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada vs. Sandiganbayan (G.R. No. 148965, February 26, 2002).
On July 10, 2001, the Court denied the motion to
defer filed by accused FPres. Estrada and Jinggoy Estrada and proceeded with
the arraignment of accused FPres. Estrada, Jinggoy Estrada, and Serapio under
the Amended Information. The accused
having refused to enter a plea, the Court entered a plea of not guilty for all
the three (3) accused.
Petitions
for Bail / House Arrest
With the detention of accused FPres. Estrada and
Jinggoy Estrada in
The Court on June 9, 2001, issued a Resolution
denying accused FPres. Estrada’s Urgent Ex-Parte Motion to Place on House
Arrest and issued an Order for the confinement of accused FPres. Estrada and
Jinggoy Estrada at
On March 17, 2004, FPres. Estrada filed a Motion to
Modify Custodial Arrangement dated March 17, 2004 and, on March 30, 2004, the
counsel de officio of accused FPres. Estrada filed a Manifestation dated March
29, 2004 informing the Court, among others, that the said accused was willing
to have his property in Tanay, Rizal placed under the control and supervision
of the Court and the Philippine National Police for the duration of his
detention.
On July 12, 2004, the Court issued a joint resolution
granting FPres. Estrada’s motion to modify Custodial Arrangement dated March
29, 2004 subject to the conditions imposed by the Court. Accused FPres. Estrada filed a Compliance and
Acceptance of Conditions on July 13, 2004.
Since then, accused FPres. Estrada has been detained in his property at
Tanay, Rizal.
When the Court ordered the arrest and detention of
the accused in these cases, accused Serapio filed his petition for bail on
April 27, 2001. Accused Jinggoy
Estrada’s petition for bail was included in his Very Urgent Omnibus Motion
dated April 30, 2001.
Accused
Serapio’s Petition for Bail was deferred indefinitely as prayed for by the said
accused while, on August 14, 2001, accused Jinggoy Estrada filed an Urgent
Second Motion for Bail for Medical Reasons dated August 16, 2001 which the
prosecution opposed. On December 20,
2001, the Court issued its Resolution denying accused Jinggoy Estrada’s Urgent
Second Motion for Bail for Medical Reasons.
Considering the denial of the said motion for bail
for medical reasons, accused Jinggoy Estrada, on April 17, 2002, filed an
Omnibus Application for Bail dated April 16, 2002. After hearing, the Court issued a Resolution
on March 6, 2003 which granted accused Jinggoy Estrada’s Omnibus Application
for Bail. The prosecution’s Motion for Reconsideration dated March 13, 2003 was
denied in this Court’s Resolution dated April 30, 2003. The aforesaid Resolutions
granting bail to Mayor Jinggoy Estrada were upheld by the Honorable Supreme
Court in a Decision promulgated in G.R. No. 158754, People vs. Sandiganbayan (Special Division) and Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada
(August 10, 2007).
As to accused Serapio, the Court’s Resolution dated
September 12, 2003 also granted accused-movant Serapio’s Urgent Petition for
Bail dated April 27, 2001. The Court
fixed the amount of bail of accused Serapio and Jinggoy Estrada at Five Hundred
Thousand Pesos (P500,000.00) each which was to paid in cash.
While the case was already in the trial stage, on
January 4, 2002 the counsels for the accused Estradas wrote a letter to the
Acting Presiding Justice requesting for a re-raffle of the cases against the
accused, citing as grounds the continuing uncertain composition of the justices
handling the cases against the accused Former President, et al., at that time. The prosecution filed its Opposition to
Request for Re-Raffle On January 9, 2002 and its Comment/Suggestion on January
10, 2002 that a Special Third Division be constituted to be composed of the
present Presiding Justice, the only remaining member of the Third Division to
which the case was raffled, and two other Sandiganbayan Justices who are not
retirables within the next three (3) years.
Justice Anacleto Badoy, the Chairman of the Third Division, was due to
retire on October 2002, while Justice Ilarde, the other member, retired on
November 27, 2001. On January 11, 2002,
the Sandiganbayan En Banc issued its Resolution 01-2002 recommending to the
Supreme Court that the cases against accused FPres. Estrada, et al., be
referred to a Special Division. The
Supreme Court on January 21, 2002 promulgated its Resolution Creating the
Special Division of the Sandiganbayan which shall hear, try and decide with
dispatch the Plunder Case and all related cases filed or may hereafter be filed
against accused FPres. Estrada, and those accused with him, until they are
resolved, decided and terminated. In the
Special Division of the Sandiganbayan, the Supreme Court retained, as Junior Member,
the present Presiding Justice who was then the only remaining member of the
Third Division to which the Plunder Case was raffled, and designated the then
Presiding Justice Minita V. Chico-Nazario, as Chairperson, and Associate
Justice Edilberto G. Sandoval as Senior Member.
This was not the first time that a Special Division of the Sandiganbayan
was constituted to try a case. A Special
Division was previously constituted to try and decide the Aquino-Galman cases in
that composition of the said Division was also maintained until the case was
decided notwithstanding the subsequent changes in the composition of the Division
due to promotions and/or retirement of its members.
During the same year, the counsel de parte of accused
FPres. Estrada and Jinggoy Estrada all withdrew their appearances. The Court on March 1, 2002, in order to
protect the rights and interest of the accused, appointed the Public Attorneys
Office (PAO) and those who have been recommended by the Board of Governor of
the Integrated Bar of the
Upon conclusion of the presentation of prosecution
evidence and after the Court have ruled on the offer of evidence of the
prosecution, accused FPres. Estrada, Jinggoy Estrada and Serapio filed their
respective motion for leave of court to file demurrer to evidence. In a Joint Resolution dated March 10, 2004,
the Court granted accused FPres. Estrada’s Motion for Leave to File Demurrer to
Evidence in Criminal Case Nos. 26905 and 26565 while it denied the same motion
of all the accused in Criminal Case No. 26558 for lack of merit. Subsequently, the Demurrer to Evidence of
accused FPres. Estrada was filed. In its
Joint Resolution dated July 12, 2004, the Court resolved to deny FPres.
Estrada’s Demurrer to Evidence in Criminal Case No. 26905 but granted the
Demurrer to Evidence of FPres. Estrada in Criminal Case No. 26565.
After the presentation of the evidence for accused
FPres. Estrada and Jinggoy Estrada, accused Serapio manifested that he opted
not to present his own evidence but adopted the evidence presented by FPres.
Estrada and Jinggoy Estrada. The said
accused then formally offered their evidence.
The Court issued its resolution on the formal offer of evidence for
accused FPres. Estrada, Jinggoy Estrada and Serapio. On the other hand, the prosecution manifested
that it was not presenting any rebuttal evidence but formally offered
additional evidence and tendered excluded evidence in its Supplemental Formal
Offer of Exhibits [Re: Exhibits Identified, Presented, and Marked during the
Cross Examination of Defense Witnesses] with Tender of Excluded Evidence dated
March 29, 2007. The Court issued its
Minute Resolution dated April 19, 2007 on the said additional offer of evidence
of the prosecution.
In an Order dated May 9, 2007, the Court gave the
parties a period of time to file their respective memoranda and scheduled the
Oral Summation requested by accused FPres. Estrada and Jinggoy Estrada on June
15, 2007. After the Oral Summation, the
case was submitted for decision.
Incidentally, on November 10, 2006, the National
Bureau of Investigation filed its Return of “Alias” Order of Arrest, informing
the Court that one of the accused in this case, Atong Ang was extradited from
the
On January 24, 2007, when the case was scheduled for
Pre-Trial only for accused Atong Ang, the prosecution and the said accused,
assisted by his counsel, manifested in open court that they had executed a Plea
Bargaining Agreement. The Court’s
Resolution dated March 14, 2007 approved the Plea Bargaining Agreement entered
into by the parties.
On March 19, 2007, during accused Atong Ang’s
re-arraignment, the said accused pleaded guilty to a lesser offense of
Corruption of Public Officials under Article 212 in relation to Article 211 of
the Revised Penal Code. On the same day,
the Court rendered its decision against accused Atong Ang sentencing said
accused to “two (2) years and four (4) months of prision correccional minimum,
as minimum, to six (6) years of prision correccional maximum, as maximum, and
to pay the amount of P25,000,000.00 to the Government as his civil liability”. Accused Atong Ang immediately filed a
Petition for Probation (with Motion to Deduct Period of Preventive Imprisonment
from the Term of Imprisonment and to Post Bail Pending Resolution thereof)
which the Court granted in a Resolution dated May 25, 2007. Accused Atong Ang is now under probation.
STATEMENT OF THE STIPULATIONS
OF THE PARTIES AT PRE-TRIAL
________________________________
After
the arraignment of the accused, the pre-trial was conducted which led to the
issuance of the Amended Pre-Trial Order dated June 14, 2001, quoted in part
hereunder:
When this case was called for pre-trial on September 3,
2001, accused JOSEPH EJERCITO ESTRADA, JOSE “Jinggoy” P. ESTRADA appeared,
assisted by counsels, Atty. Jose B. Flaminiano, Atty. Cleofe Villar-Verzola,
Atty. Rene A. V. Saguisag and Atty. Raymond Parsifal A. Fortun. Accused Edward
S. Serapio likewise appeared, assisted by his counsels, Atty. Sabino Acut, Jr.
and Atty. Martin Israel L. Pison. The People was represented by Ombudsman
Aniano A. Desierto, Deputy Ombudsman Margarito P. Gervacio, Jr., Deputy Special
Prosecutor Robert E. Kallos, Ombudsman Prosecutor III Antonio T. Manzano and
Humphrey T. Monteroso.
The
accused Estradas and Edward S. Serapio submitted their WAIVER OF APPEARANCE
dated September 3, 2001 stating as follows:
Accused
Joseph Estrada, Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada and Edward S. Serapio hereby waive their
appearance during the pre-trial and the trial of this case subject to the
conditions that:
a)
whenever
his/her/their name/s/are mentioned at any stage of the proceedings of this/
these case/s whether in testimonial or documentary evidence, such name/s
refer/s to his/her/them; and
b)
whenever
his/her/their appearance shall be require by the Court at any time, they will
appear, otherwise warrant/s shall issue for their arrest.
The
aforementioned three (3) accused verbally manifested in open Court that they
fully understand and agree with their conditions contained in their Waiver of
Appearance.
Xxx xxx xxx
The
prosecution, the accused Estradas and accused Serapio agreed to stipulate on
the following facts, as proposed by the prosecution to wit:
1.
That
accused Joseph Estrada (“Estrada” for short) took his oath of office as
President of the Republic of the
2.
That
accused Joseph Estrada is married to Dra. (now Senator) Luisa P. Ejercito; [cf.
Proposal No. 2 (For all Specifications) of accused Estrada’s Proposed
Stipulation of Facts of the defense dated 01 August 2001];
3.
That
accused Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada, Jr. (“Jinggoy” for short) is the son of accused
Joseph Estrada; [cf. Proposal No. 3 (For all Specifications) of accused
Estrada’s Proposed Stipulation of Facts of the defense dated 01 August 2001;
4.
Edward
S. Serapio is a lawyer and a former professor of law at the Ateneo de Manila University
School of Law; [cf. Proposal No. 1 of accused Atty. Edward Serapio’s Request
for Stipulation of Facts and Admission of Documents dated 01 August 2001;
5.
On
April 29 1999, Atty. Serapio was appointed by President Joseph Estrada as
Presidential Assistant for Political Affairs with the rank of Undersecretary.
[cf. Proposal No. 2 of accused Atty. Edward Serapio’s Request for Stipulation
of Facts and Admission of Documents dated 01 August 2001;
6.
He
accepted such appointment. [cf. Proposal No. 2. 1 of specification of accused
Atty. Edward Serapio’s Request for Stipulation of Facts and Admission of
documents dated 01 August 2001.
The other stipulations of facts
proposed by the accused Estradas and admitted by the prosecution were:
1.
That
From 1998-2001, Mr. Luis “Chavit” Singson was elected Governor of the province
of Ilocos Sur; [cf. Proposal No. 6 (For all Specifications) of accused
Estrada’s Proposed Stipulation of Facts of the defense dated 01 August 2001];
2.
That
the amount of P40 Million was withdrawn by a person representing herself to be
accused Alma Alfaro from Land Bank of the Philippines-Shaw Branch on 28th
August 1998; [cf. Proposal No. 5 of specification (b) of accused Joseph E.
Estrada and Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada’s Stipulation of Facts and Admission of
Documents dated 01 August 2001.
The accused Estradas proposed and
the prosecution admitted the following stipulation of facts:
1.
That
accused Joseph Estrada personally knows Mr. Rodolfo “Bong” Pineda; [cf. Paragraph 13 of the
Prosecution’s Additional Stipulation of Facts dated 01 August 2001];
2.
That
accused Joseph Estrada personally knows “Atong” Ang; [cf. Paragraph 17 of the
Prosecution’s Additional stipulation of Facts dated 01 August 2001];
3.
That
accused Joseph Estrada personally knows Mr. Lucio Co; [cf. Paragraph 23 of the
Prosecution’s Additional Stipulation of Facts dated 01 August 2001];
4.
That
accused Joseph Estrada personally knows Mr. Jaime Dichaves; [cf. Paragraph 24
of the Prosecution’s Additional Stipulation of Facts dated 01 August 2001];
5.
That
accused President Estrada is a close and childhood friend of Carlos A.
Arellano; [cf. Paragraph 1 Re: Belle case of the Prosecution’s Additional
Stipulation of Facts dated 01 August 2001];
6.
That
accused President Estrada appointed Carlos A. Arellano as Chairman of the
Social Security System on July 1, 1998; [cf. Paragraph 2 re: Belle case of the
Prosecution’s Additional Stipulation of Facts dated 01 August 2001];
7.
That
Carlos A. Arellano was appointed by accused President Estrada as President and
Chief Executive Officer of the Social Security System; [cf. Paragraph 3 re:
Belle case of the Prosecution’s Additional Stipulation of Facts dated 01 August
2001];
8.
That
accused President Estrada knew of the existence of Belle Corporation; [cf.
Paragraph 7 re: Belle case of the Prosecution’s Additional Stipulation of Facts
dated 01 August 2001];
Proposed
Stipulation of Facts of the prosecution admitted by accused Serapio:
1.
That
Erap Muslim Youth Foundation (hereinafter the
“Foundation”) has a huge fund of more than P211 Million.
The only issue that was raised by
the parties for resolution is whether or not accused JOSEPH EJERCITO ESTRADA,
JOSE “Jinggoy” P. ESTRADA and ATTY. EDWARD S. SERAPIO are guilty of the offense
charged in the Amended Information.
The accused Estradas raise also the
issue of whether or not the allegations in the information would constitute the
crime of plunder as defined by R.A. No. 7080. (
The
evidence submitted by the prosecution and the defense in support of, or in
denial, of the speculations of the predicate acts adverted to in each of the
paragraphs are discussed hereunder in seriatim:
EVIDENCE PRESENTED:
RE: SUB-PARAGRAPH A OF THE
AMENDED INFORMATION
____________________________
(a) by
receiving OR collecting, directly or indirectly, on SEVERAL
INSTANCES, MONEY IN THE AGGREGATE AMOUNT OF FIVE HUNDRED FORTY-FIVE MILLION
PESOS (P545,000,000.00), MORE OR LESS, FROM ILLEGAL GAMBLING IN THE FORM OF
GIFT, SHARE, PERCENTAGE, KICKBACK OR ANY FORM OF PECUNIARY BENEFIT, BY HIMSELF
AND/OR in connivance with co-accused CHARLIE ‘ATONG’ ANG, JOSE
‘Jinggoy’ Estrada, Yolanda T. Ricaforte, Edward Serapio, AND JOHN DOES AND
JANE DOES, in consideration OF TOLERATION OR PROTECTION OF ILLEGAL
GAMBLING;
The alleged co-conspirators of accused Former President
Joseph Ejercito Estrada named in this paragraph (a) are: Charlie “Atong” Tiu
Hay Sy Ang (Atong Ang), Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada, Yolanda T. Ricaforte (Ricaforte)
and Edward S. Serapio. The paragraph
also refers to unidentified co-conspirators by the usual “Jane Does” and “John
Does”.
I. EVIDENCE
FOR THE PROSECUTION
The principal witness of the prosecution in this
first specification of the predicate acts of plunder is Former Ilocos Sur
Governor Luis “Chavit” C. Singson. He
testified extensively on the charge that FPres. Estrada accumulated ill-gotten
wealth in the above-mentioned amount through the monthly remittance to him of
seems of money collected from operations of illegal gambling, commonly known as
“jueteng”, based in the different provinces of the country allegedly in
consideration of the prosecution or unimpeded operation of said illegal gambling.
The gist of the testimony of Singson relative to
paragraph (a) of the Amended Information is set forth hereunder:
GOVERNOR
LUIS “CHAVIT” CRISOLOGO SINGSON (Gov.
Singson) was 61 years old, married, a businessman, and a resident of
(1) the collection of jueteng protection money from November 1998
to August 2000, in the amount of Five Hundred Forty Five Million Pesos (P545,000,000.00)
more or less and the amount of Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00) also
from the said illegal gambling protection money; and
(2) misappropriation, diversion and conversion for his personal
gain as benefit public funds in the amount of
One Hundred Thirty Million Pesos (P130,000,000.00) more or less,
representing a portion of the Two Hundred Million pesos (P200,000,000.00)
Tobacco Excise Share allocated for the Province of Ilocos Sur under Republic
Act No. 7171.
Gov. Singson was also presented by the prosecution to
prove that Jinggoy Estrada and Serapio conspired with and/or acted as
co-principals by indispensable cooperation of FPres. Estrada in the running of
the illegal numbers game of jueteng and in the receipt by FPres. Estrada of
jueteng protection money; that accused Jinggoy Estrada regularly collected
jueteng protection money every month from January of 1999 to August 15, 2000,
as an indispensable part of the amassing and accumulating ill-gotten wealth by
principal accused FPres. Estrada and as part of the series and/or combination
of overt or criminal acts constituting the crime of plunder; that Serapio
conspired with FPres. Estrada and the other accused in receiving the Two Hundred
Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00) which came from jueteng operations and in
hiding and/or laundering the same through the banking system and that Serapio
was the personal lawyer of FPres. Estrada and that in furtherance of the
conspiracy he set up various juridical entities to mask and/or hide various
illegal proprietary and business interests of FPres. Estrada. Gov. Singson would also identify certain
documents, checks, pictures and other facts relevant to the foregoing, which
tend to prove the combination and/or series of overt and criminal acts,
constitutive of the crime of plunder (and to oppose the petition for bail of
Jinggoy Estrada. Gov. Singson’s
testimony was also offered to prove the illegal use of alias). [TSN dated July 17, 2002, pp. 168-174]
Gov. Singson testified that he was called by FPres.
Estrada at his house in
According to Gov. Singson, the day after the
aforementioned meeting, Atong Ang started meeting with the jueteng operators in
his office near the municipal hall of San Juan. [Ibid, p. 188] Atong Ang and the operators were bargaining
how much protection money from each province will be given to FPres. Estrada.
[Ibid, p. 193] After the final talk,
they started collecting jueteng protection money, specifically from August of
1998. [Ibid, p. 203]
Gov. Singson knew FPres. Estrada for almost thirty
(30) years before August of 1998. FPres.
Estrada was not yet a mayor but a movie actor as Gov. Singson’s mother was a
producer. [Ibid, p. 191] Gov. Singson
first met Atong Ang at the cockpit and gambling places. He had known Atong Ang
for a long time even when FPres. Estrada was still the Vice President. According to Gov. Singson, Bong Pineda was a
close “compadre” of FPres. Estrada while his son, Jinggoy Estrada, was Bong
Pineda’s godson by marriage. [Ibid, p. 197]
Gov.
Singson claimed that he was present in not all but several meetings of Atong
Ang with the jueteng collectors. He was
present when there was an agreement on the three percent (3%) of total
collections in every province, as fixed by Atong Ang. [TSN dated July 22, 2002,
pp. 12-13] Jueteng money was delivered
to FPres. Estrada initially every end of the month, starting September of 1998
and later every 15th and at the end of the month. [Ibid, p.14]
On October of 1998, Gov. Singson and Atong Ang
brought the jueteng protection money of about Nine Million Pesos (P9,000,000.00)
for the said month to FPres. Estrada at his house, in
Gov. Singson continued the collection as instructed
by FPres. Estrada, still with the help of Atong Ang, from November of 1998 until
August of 2000. The amounts of money
collected from jueteng during the said period were listed in the ledger per
month and per province. The ledger also
listed the expenses paid for using the jueteng protection money. [Ibid, pp.
24-27]
Every
fifteen (15) days, Gov. Singson himself delivered protection money to FPres.
Estrada in the amount of Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) or a total of Ten
Million Pesos (P10,000,000.00) every month.
Emma B. Lim delivered once the jueteng money to FPres. Estrada in
Malacañang. The protection money was
delivered usually in cash but sometimes in check. Chavit Singon presented to this court two (2)
sets of ledger. The first set consisted of nine (9) pages covering the month of
November of 1998 up to July of 1999 (Exh. W7 to Exh. E8). The September 1998 and October 1998
collections were not reflected in the said ledger since the ledger was done
only after FPres. Estrada and Atong Ang quarreled in October 1998. The second set of ledger covered the months
of August of 1999 to August of 2000 (Exh.A-4 to Exh. A-4-d). [TSN dated July 22, 2002, p. 27-31]
Gov. Singson prepared the pages of the first set of
ledger (Exh. W7 to E8)
with the help of Emma B. Lim and Ma. Carmencita Itchon and on the following
year, Ricaforte joined them. [Ibid, pp. 35-36]
The pages of the second set of ledgers starting
August of 1999 to August of 2000 [Exhibit A-4 and submarkings] were prepared by
Ricaforte under the supervision of Gov. Singson who also checked the said
ledger. [Ibid, pp. 36-37]
Ricaforte was introduced to Gov. Singson by FPres.
Estrada before his birthday on April 19, 1999.
She was designated by FPres. Estrada as auditor because FPres. Estrada was strict with money. Gov. Singson was thankful for Ricaforte’s
designation because he did not want FPres. Estrada to distrust him. [Ibid, p. 40]
Gov. Singson considered Ricaforte as the employee of FPres. Estrada with
respect to the jueteng collections because not only was she introduced to
Singson by FPres. Estrada, the latter also told Singson to give her Eighty
Thousand Pesos (P80, 000.00) monthly salary.
Ricaforte held office at
According to Gov. Singson, the jueteng collections
were placed in a scratch paper as they came every fifteen (15) days, at the
middle and the end of the month or five (5) days after the end of the
month. When all the collections had
arrived, the list was finalized and then transferred to the computer. The ledgers were prepared upon instructions
of FPres. Estrada because the latter was strict with money. [Ibid, pp. 37-40,
41-42]
Gov. Singson explained in detail the entries on the
left hand portion of the ledger for November of 1998 up to July of 1999. In the province of Ilocos Sur, the total
collection for fifteen (15) days was Seven Hundred Fifty Thousand Pesos
(P750,000.00), in the province of La Union for 15 days, Five Hundred Thousand
Pesos (P500,000.00) total collection, while in Bulacan for 15 days, One Million
Pesos (P1,000,000.00) total collection (Exh. W7) of protection money
for FPres. Estrada. The entries for the
other provinces were similar. On the left side column were the names of the
provinces, the middle column pertained to the number of days, i.e., whether for 15 or 30 days and the right
column, the total amount of collections of jueteng protection money, in order
that jueteng operators will not be “arrested” or apprehended. There was one (1) collector for three (3)
provinces. [Ibid, pp. 53-54]
In the second set of ledger (Exh. A-4 to A-4-d)
Ricaforte gave a code name for every province below the title “Theme”. The number of days, either 15 or 30, under
the title “days” and the total amount of protection money for FPres. Estrada
below the title “points” were indicated in the ledger. [Ibid, pp. 55-56]
Gov. Singson narrated that when FPres. Estrada was
still the Vice President, they were already collecting jueteng money but not in
all provinces. When FPres. Estrada
assumed the presidency, he called Gov. Singson and Atong Ang to start jueteng
collections in provinces without protection money. Atong Ang talked to certain persons in the
said provinces so that the collection of protection money could start. Every
province had a collector but sometimes there was one collector for three (3)
provinces. The collections were submitted
to Gov. Singson but sometimes they would get the money from the house of the
collectors. The jueteng collections
which FPres. Estrada asked Gov. Singson to operate for FPres. Estrada’s own
benefit was at the national level, meaning nationwide. They did not interfere with jueteng operations
at the lower level. Before there were
“Kangaroo” type of jueteng operations or “Guerilla Type”. They did it on their own and they did not pay
protection money. When the jueteng
operators gave protection money to FPres. Estrada, they were not apprehended
anymore although there were instructions to the contrary which were for show or
for record purposes only. [Ibid, pp. 59-64]
There were local officials who did not allow jueteng
like Governor Lina in Laguna. He changed the Provincial Commander several times
but jueteng still continued. In the
other places the protection money for jueteng given to the local officials was
different from that given to the higher levels. [Ibid, pp. 65-66]
In Exhibit A-4, ULAC stands for Bulacan and the
figure 1.00 means One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) for fifteen (15) days, as
protection money for FPres. Estrada. If
the number of days was blank it meant 15 days, otherwise the number 30 was
indicated.
In the ledger (Exh A-4-C up to A-4-I) covering the
periods of January of 2000 up to August of 2000, the same figures appeared but
the code names of the provinces were replaced by their original names as
instructed by FPres. Estrada who was confused with the code names. Under the sub-title “amount“, the total
amount of protection money given to FPres. Estrada was reflected. For instance, in Ilocos Sur, the amount of
500 meant Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (P500,000.00). [Ibid, pp. 67-68]
The other entries were similar, except for the
substitution of the code names with actual names of the provinces. For instance, the amount of protection money
given to FPres. Estrada corresponding to Ilocos Sur entered as 500, was Five
Hundred Thousand Pesos (P500,000.00).
For the
The two boxes of entries at the right bottom of the
ledger marked as Exhibits A-4 to A-4-l, reflected the expenses to show where
some of the money collected went. [Ibid, p. 70] The first entry (Exh. W7-1) showed
that Two Million Pesos (P2,000,000.00) went to “Jimpol”, which referred to then
Secretary Jimmy Policarpio. The latter confirmed to Gov. Singson this receipt
of the said amount from Bong Pineda which Secretary Policarpio, then a
political liaison officer for Congress, would
use for the media. [Ibid, pp. 74-75] In the ledger for November of 1998, the
entry 300 Goma (Exh W7-2) means that Three Million Pesos
(P3,000,000.00) was given to the Office
of the Chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP). [Ibid, pp.74-76] Gov.
Singson himself brought the money at first to General Lastimoso, the Chief of
the PNP but he refused to receive the money. Later Atong Ang identified the
persons from PNP who will pick up the money and help them in the
operation. Gov. Singson called up FPres.
Estrada to inform him that Lastimoso refused to receive the money. Gov. Singson
was worried Lastimoso may not coordinate with them. One time, Gov. Singson was called to
Malacanang and he met General Lastimoso there and FPres. Estrada told the latter to coordinate with Gov. Singson about the operation of
jueteng. General Lastimoso expressed the need to coordinate with the Regional
Commanders to apprehend jueteng operations for show only (“kunwari”). [Ibid,
pp. 77-80]
The entry “November 1998, 5.00, AS Sunday” (Exh W7-3)
means that the amount for Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) protection money
was given to FPres. Estrada, whose code name was “Asiong Salonga” on a
Sunday. Gov. Singson himself gave the money
to FPres. Estrada. The next entry “1.000
Jing” (Exh W7-4), would show that One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00)
was given to Jinggoy Estrada, whose code name was “Jing”. According to Gov. Singson, Jinggoy Estrada
was the collector of protection money for the Province of Bulacan which should
be Three Million Pesos (P3,000,000.00) for every month but Jinggoy Estrada kept
the One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) and remit to Gov. Singson only Two
Million Pesos (P2,000,000.00) or One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) for every 15
days. [Ibid, pp. 80-82]
Atong Ang told Gov. Singson that Jinggoy Estrada got
One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) and Jinggoy Estrada confirmed it but when
they told FPres. Estrada about it, he instructed them not to give Jinggoy
Estrada money and he will be the one to give money to Jinggoy Estrada. Gov. Singson removed the name of Jinggoy
Estrada from the list and they kept it a secret from FPres. Estrada that
Jinggoy Estrada was taking jueteng money because Jinggoy Estrada will get angry
too if he was not given a share. Jinggoy
Estrada was then the Mayor of the
The entry “500 JD” (Exh W7-5) means that
Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (P500,000.00) went to Jude Estrada, a son of FPres.
Estrada. Jude confirmed to Gov. Singson
that he received the said amount of jueteng protection money from Atong Ang who
reported that to Gov. Singson. The entry
“1.800 ad check” (Exh W7-6) refers to One Million Eight Hundred
Thousand Pesos (P1,800,000.00) covered by a bad check, part of jueteng money,
which bounced. This was PCI Bank Check
No. 0019063 (Exh. F8) given to Gov. Singson by one Celso De Los
Angeles. The entry “17.300 total
expenses” (Exh. W7-7) represents the Seventeen Million Three Hundred
Pesos (P17,300,000.00) the amount of total expenses for the month of November
of 1998. The total expenses every month
were entered in the ledger (Exh. X7 to E8, and Exh. A-4
to A-4-d. [Ibid, pp. 85-92])
In the entry for December of 1998 (Exh. X7),
the first entry “5.00, AS” (Exh. X7-1) shows the Five Million Pesos
(P5,000,000.00) that was given by Gov. Singson to FPres. Estrada from the
collection of jueteng protection money.
The ledger for January 1999 bearing as first entry “6.00 cash January 2,
AS” (Exh Y7-1), reflected the Six Million Pesos (P6,000,000.00) cash
from the same source given personally by Gov. Singson to FPres. Estrada. The entry “3.00 check, February 1, 1999, AS”
(Exh. W7-2) shows that Three Million Pesos (P3,000,000.00) in check
was given to FPres. Estrada on February 1, 1999 as part of protection money.
[Ibid, pp. 93-95] Another entry “5.00
check, February 1, 1999 AS” (Exh Y7-3), refers to the Five Million
Pesos (P5,000,000.00) Check given by Gov. Singson to FPres. Estrada from
jueteng protection money. This check
(Metrobank Check No.0000917, Exh G8-1) was deposited in the account
of Paul Boghart, who was mentioned during the impeachment trial at the Senate
as a foreigner assisting in the “PR” of FPres. Estrada. [Ibid, pp. 93-97]
The entry “3.500 cash, January 19, AS” (Exh. Y7-4)
pertains to Three Million Five Hundred Pesos (P3,500,000.00) cash from the
protection money given by Gov. Singson to FPres. Estrada on January 19
(1999). The entry “5.00, February 18,
AS” (Exh. Z7-1) refers to the Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00)
given by Gov. Singson to FPres. on February 18, 1999 from the same protection
money. Gov. Singson explained that the
entry “400 tax” (Exh Z7-2) at the right hand portion of Exhibit Z7,
refers to the Four Hundred Thousand Pesos (P400,000.00) which he got for
reimbursement of the expenses that he paid or would pay but were not recorded
in the ledger. In the ledger for March
1999 (Exh. A8), April 1999 (Exh. B8), May 1999 (Exh. C8),
June 1999 (Exh. D8), July 1999 (Exh. E8), and August 1999
(Exh A-4) there were similar entries of “tax” which were also intended for the
same purpose. Gov. Singson called them
“butal”. Gov. Singson had the permission
of FPres. Estrada that all amounts less than One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00)
were considered “butal” which Gov. Singson kept for reimbursement of expenses
which FPres. Estrada would ask Gov. Singson to pay. If the total amount collection was Four
Million Two Hundred Pesos (P4,200,000.00), Gov. Singson got Two Hundred
Thousand Pesos (P200,000.00) of the said collection as “butal” and included the
same in the ledger as “tax”. [Ibid, pp. 98-101]
In the ledger for February 1999 collection appears a
handwritten entry “+ 4.00 capitol February 3, 1999”. This entry pertains to the Four Million Pesos
(P4,000,000.00) “kickback” which FPres. Estrada asked Gov. Singson to give him
on February 3, 1999 out of the Twenty Million Pesos (P20,000,000.00) allotted
for the repair of the capitol of Ilocos Sur.
This P4 Million was added to the “total to date” of the collection which
consequently amounted to Thirty Eight Million Pesos (P38,000,000.00). [Ibid,
pp. 102-103]
In the ledger for March 1999 (Exh. A8), the
first entry “5.00, 4/6/99, AS” (Exh. A8-1) shows that Five Mllion
Pesos (P5,000,000.00) that Gov. Singson gave FPres. Estrada on April 6,
1999. Gov. Singson wrote on the ledger
“AS”, i.e. Asiong Salonga, the code name of FPres. Estrada [Ibid, p. 103]
Regarding the entry “500 3/23 c/0
On April 1, 1999, Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00)
were given by Gov. Singson to FPres. Estrada from jueteng protection money as
shown by the entry “5.00 4/1/99 AS” (Exh B8-1). The next entry, “1.00, William Gatchalian”
(Exh “B8-2), refers to the One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) given
by Gov. Singson to William Gatchalian upon instruction of FPres. Estrada. Gatchalian had a Twenty Million Pesos
(P20,000,000.00) check but FPres. Estrada won only Nineteen Million Pesos
(P19,000,000.00) in their mahjong game, so FPres. Estrada asked Gov. Singson to
give to Gatchalian the change of One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) charged to
the jueteng protection money. Gov.
Singson gave Gatchalian the said amount through a Metrobank Check No. 0001066
(Exh H8 and H8-1). [Ibid, pp.106-109]
The entry in Exhibit B8 which reads “200
Jerry and Len” (Exh B8-3) reflects the One Hundred Thousand Pesos
(P100,000.00) each given to then Secretary Lenny De Jesus and Secretary Jerry
Barican, or a total amount of Two Hundred Thousand Pesos (P200,000.00), as
“balato” as instructed by FPres. Estrada. [Ibid, pp. 109-110]
Senator Tessie Oreta
and Sonny Osmena were also given One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) each
or a total of Two Million Pesos (P2,000,000.00) in Cebu aboard the Presidential
Yatch “Ang Pangulo” as shown by the entry “2.00 Tessie and Sonny” (Exh. B8). Gov. Singson gave the said sums of money to
the Senators, which he funded through the jueteng protection money, in the form
of Metrobank Check No. 0001081 (Exhs. I8 and I8 -1 and
Metrobank Check No. 0001082 (Exhs. J8 and J8-1) upon
instruction of FPres. Estrada, as their “balato” for the winning of the latter
in “Mahjong”. [Ibid, pp. 112-114]
The amount of Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) was
given by Gov. Singson to FPres. Estrada from the jueteng protection money on
each of the following dates as shown by the entries in the ledger: (1) May 1,
1999 (“5.00 5/1/99 AS” – Exh. C8-1); (2) May 18, 1999 (“5.00 5/18/99
AS” – Exh. C8-2); (3) June 1, 1999 (“5.00 6/1/99 AS” – Exh. D8-1);
(4) June 18, 1999 (“5.00 6/18/99 AS” – Exh. D8-2); (5) July 31, 1999
(“5.00 7/1/99 AS” – Exh. E8-1); and (6) July 19, 1999 (“5.00 7/19/99
AS” – Exh. E8-2). From May 1,
1999 to July 19, 1999, the total amount of money given by Gov. Singson to
FPres. Estrada would amount to Thirty Million Pesos (P30,000,000.00) based on
the ledger. [Ibid, pp.115-118]
The entry reading “123,000 total to date” (Exh E8-3)
represents the total amount of One Hundred Twenty Three Million Pesos
(P123,000,000.00) that remained as of July 1999. [Ibid, pp. 118-119]
After July 1999, particularly on August 1999, FPres.
Estrada called Gov. Singson, Ricaforte and Serapio to a meeting at
Mandaluyong. Gov. Singson was instructed
by FPres. Estrada in the presence of Ricaforte and Serapio to turn-over all the
balance of the money from jueteng to the account of Ricaforte. Gov. Singson was keeping most of the above-mentioned
P123,000,000.00 in the bank and the others in cash in his office because FPres.
Estrada would ask for money from time to time.
Gov. Singson turned-over the aforementioned balance of the jueteng money
partly in check and partly in cash in the office of FPres. Estrada. Ricaforte and Serapio were there with the
Former President. [Ibid, pp.119-123]
Part of the aforesaid P123,000,000.00 was covered by
Metrobank Check No. 0001360 (Exh K8 and K8-1) of Gov.
Singson in the amount of Seventeen Million Two Hundred Ten Thousand Pesos
(P17,210,000.00) [Ibid, p. 123]. The
second and third checks (Exhs A-2-b and A-7-c) were PCI Bank checks in the
account name of William Gatchalian each in the amount of Thirty-Five Million
Pesos (P35,000,000.00) or a total of Seventy Million Pesos (P70,000,000.00). Gov. Singson narrated that the amount of
Sixty-Two Million Pesos (P62,000,000.00) from the jueteng protection money was
lent to William Gatchalian. Out of this
transaction, FPres. Estrada earned Eight Million Pesos (P8,000,000.00) such
that William Gatchalian paid a total of Seventy Million Pesos (P70,000,000.00).
[Ibid, pp. 124-125]
Gov. Singson presented Metrobank Check No. 0001332
with account name Governor Luis “Chavit” Singson, in the amount of Forty-Six
Million Three Hundred Fifty Thousand Pesos (P46,350,000,00) payable to William
Gatchalian (Exh L8 and L8-1). This check, according to Gov. Singson was
part of the jueteng protection money lent to William Gatchalian. The rest of the P62,000,000.00 were in cash
and covered by other checks. [Ibid, pp. 126-127]
The Eight Million Pesos (P8,000,000.00) earned from
the loan by FPres. Estrada was taken as advance by the latter before due date
of the P70,000,000.00 of Gatchalian. For
this reason, the P8,000,000.00 was not anymore added to the balance of P123,000,000.00
of jueteng money. [Ibid, pp.
127-130] The advance of P8,000,000.00
was covered by Metrobank Check No. 0001388 with the account name Governor Luis
“Chavit” Singson (Exhs. M8 and M8-1). During the impeachment trial at the Senate,
it turned out that the P8,000,000.00 was deposited in the account of Senator
Loi Estrada [Ibid, pp. 130-131,139]
The fourth check which covered part of the total
balance of P123,000,000.00 jueteng protection money was a Far East bank Check
in the amount of Thirty-Four Million Six Hundred Forty Two Thousand Four
Hundred Forty Two Pesos (P34,642,442.00) payable to the order of Fontain Bleau,
Inc. (Exh B6). [Ibid, p. 124]
According to Gov. Singson, the Far East
Bank check payable to the order of Fontaine Bleau, Inc. was paid by Fontana to
Fontaine Bleau, Inc. which was a casino owned by FPres. Estrada and built with
the use of jueteng protection money. The
bulk of the P123,000,000.00 were turned-over by Gov. Singson in the form of
checks. The cash amounted only to Eight
Hundred Thousand Pesos (P800,000.00) only. [TSN dated July 24, 2002, pp.8-9]
In the second set of ledger covering the months of
August 1999 to August 2000 (Exh A-4) are found the following entries: (1) “3.00
AS 9/6 8 o’clock a.m.” (Exh A-4.1) and (2) “5.00 AS 8/16/99” (Exh A-4.2). The entries represent the two (2) Five
Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) given by Gov. Singson to FPres. Estrada on
September 6 at 8 o’clock in the morning and on August 16, 1999 or a total of
Ten Million Pesos (P10,000,000.00) as part of jueteng collection. [Ibid, pp.
10-13]
The other entries in the said ledger are: (1) “16.310
August 1-15” (A-4-3); (2) “13.150 August 16-31” (Exh. A-4-4); (3) “29.460 total
for August” (Exh. A-4-5); (4) “15.200 expenses” (Exh. A-4-6); (5) “14.260
subtotal” (Exh. A-4-7); (6) “.260 tax” (Exh. A-4-8); (7) “14.000 total to date”
(Exh. A-4-9). Gov. Singson explained
that the entries mean (1) that the total collection for August 1-15, 1999
amounted to Sixteen Million Three Hundred Ten Thousand Pesos (P16,310,000.00);
(2) that from August 16-31, 1999 the total collection was Thirteen Million One
Hundred Fifty Thousand Pesos (P13,150,000.00); (3) that the total collection
for the whole month of August 1999 was
Twenty Nine Million Four Hundred Sixty Thousand Pesos (P29,460,000.00)
which all went to FPres. Estrada. The
expenses for the said month reached Fifteen Million Two Hundred Thousand Pesos
(P15,200,000.00). The said amount of
expenses was deducted from the total collection for the same month. The remainder, described as “subtotal”,
amounted to Fourteen Million Two Hundred Sixty Thousand Pesos
(P14,260,000.00). Of the latter sum of
money, Two Hundred Sixty Thousand Pesos (P260,000.00) was treated as “butal”
and taken by Gov. Singson to be used as reimbursement for expenses which Gov.
Singson was requested by FPres. Estrada to pay.
The balance of Fourteen Million Pesos (P14,000,000.00) was deposited in
the bank for President Estrada. [Ibid, pp. 14-18]
The “tax” entries in the ledger, starting Exhibit Z
to Z-7, covered the amounts less than One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) which
were treated as “butal” that remained with Gov. Singson to reimburse him for
expenses which were not recorded in the ledger but should be deducted from the
money of FPres. Estrada. [Ibid, pp. 19-21]
Gov. Singson mentioned that he personally gave or
handed to FPres. Estrada even if Malou Florendo, FPres. Estrada’s secretary,
was around. Gov. Singson either left the
money beside FPres. Estrada or behind the latter’s chair. FPres. Estrada would count the money by the
bundle [Ibid, pp. 22-23]. The Five
Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) delivered by Emma B. Lim to Malou Florendo not to
FPres. Estrada personally was confirmed by the latter to have been received by
him. Emma B. Lim delivered the money to
the
The net balance of Fourteen Million Pesos (P14,000,000.00)
for August 1999 was deposited by Ricaforte at Equitable PCI Bank. The same was
done to the net monthly balances for September 1999, October 1999, November
1999, December 1999, January 2000, February 2000, March 2000, April 2000 and
May 2000. [Ibid, pp. 25-27]
The other entries in the second set of ledger for
September 1999 and October 1999 as follows: (1) “AS 11:30 am/258 5.000” (Exh
A-4-a-1); (2) “10/29 AS/258 5.000” (Exh A-4-b-1”); (3) 10/14 AS/258 5.000 (Exh A-4-b-2), mean
that Gov. Singson whose code name was “258” gave FPres. Estrada, referred to as
“AS”, which stands for Asiong Salonga Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) on
each of the following dates: (a) in September 1999 at 11:30 in the morning; (b)
on October 29, 1999; and (c) on October 14, 1999.
In the November 1999 ledger (Exh A-4-c), the
following entries appear (1) “11/30 laptop comp./print.105,850” (Exh. A-4-c-1)
(2) “11/30 2 Starex 800 each/258 1.600” (Exh. A-4-C-2); (3) “11:30 AS/258 12p.m
PG5.000” (Exh. A-4-C-3); (4) “11/15 AS/258 at 4p.m 5.000” ( Exh. A-4-C-4 ), and
(5) “11/08 Jimpol 2.400”.
Gov. Singson explained the foregoing entries in the
November 1999 ledger as follows: On November 30, 1999, the amount of
P105,850.00 was used to buy the laptop computer with printer of Ricaforte. On November 30, 1999, Gov. Singson purchased
Two (2) units of Starex at Eight Hundred Thousand Pesos each or a total amount
of One Million Six Hundred Thousand Pesos (P1,600,000.00). One unit of Starex went to Ricaforte and was
registered in her name. The other was left in their office. At 12:00 noon on November 30, 1999, Gov.
Singson brought Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) to FPres. Estrada in his
house at
The ledger for December 1999 (Exh. A-4-d), contains the
following entries: (1) “12/30 AS/258 5.000” (Exh A-4-d-1) and (2) “12/04 AS/258
5.00” (Exh A-4-d-2). According to Gov.
Singson the aforesaid entries show that he gave to FPres. Estrada, as part of
Jueteng protection, the amount of Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) on
December 30, 1999 and another Five Million Pesos (P5 Million) on December 4,
1999. [Ibid, pp.39-41]
The ledger for January 2000 (Exh A-4-E) contains the
following entries: (1) “1/31/00 AS at PR 5.000” (Exh A-4-E-1); and (2) “1/15/00
AS at Pr 5.000”. According to Gov.
Singson “PR” stands for Presidential Residence and “AS” for Asiong Salonga,
that he gave to FPres. Estrada the amount of Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00)
twice, one on January 31, 2000 and the other January 14, 2000, at the
Presidential Residence. [Ibid, pp.41-43]
According to Gov. Singson, he was ordered by FPres.
Estrada to give to him Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) of the jueteng
collection every fifteen (15) days of the month. All the jueteng collections were for FPres.
Estrada. The total amount of Ten Million
Pesos (P10,000,000.00) were given to him every month plus the expenses
(“gastos”) and the remainder or the rest of the collection were deposited in
the bank for FPres. Estrada in the name of Ricaforte. A total amount of Two Hundred Sixteen Million
Pesos (P216,000,000.00) were deposited in the bank for FPres. Estrada. [Ibid,
pp. 43-44]
Gov. Singson agreed at first that he would not earn
anything from jueteng, provided that the share of Ilocos Sur from the excise
tax under R.A. No. 7171 amounting to billions of pesos would be released to
them for their projects. Gov. Singson
testified that, after the One Hundred Thirty Million Pesos (P130,000,000.00)
were taken from him, the release of the funds did not continue. The Former President did not comply with the
agreement. [Ibid, pp. 44-46]
In the ledger for February 2000 (Exh A-4-F), the
following entries appear: (1) “AS/258 5.000” (Exh A-4-F-1); and (2) “2/17/00 AS
258 5.000” (Exh A-4-F-2). Gov. Singson
testified that these entries mean that he gave to FPres. Estrada, Five Million
Pesos (P5,000,000.00) as part of jueteng protection money in an unspecified day
in February of 2000 and another Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) of the same
money on February 17, 2000. [Ibid, pp. 48-49]
The ledger for March 2000 (Exh A-4-G), bears the
following entries: (1) “3/16/00 AS/258 5.000” (Exh A-4-g-1); and (2) “4/3/00
AS/258 5.000” (Exh A-4-G-2). According
to Gov. Singson the entries mean that he gave Five Million Pesos (P5 Million)
on March 16, 2000 and another Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) on April
3,2000, both as part of jueteng protection money. [Ibid, pp. 49-50] Gov. Singson explained that “258” was his
code name which he had been using even in their radio communication and that
later, FPres. Estrada would kid him with his code name when they played
mahjong. [Ibid, p. 52]
In the April 2000 ledger (Exh A-4-H), the entry
“4/14/00 AS/258 5.000” appeared twice, (Exh A-4-H-1) because according to Gov.
Singson he gave Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) twice, one in the morning
and another in the afternoon on the same day, April 14, 2000, or a total of Ten
Million Pesos (P10,000,000.00) from jueteng protection money collection,
because FPres. called him up twice on the said date as his birthday on April
19, 2000 was nearing. [Ibid, pp. 53-54]
At the ledger for May 2000 (Exh A-4-i), the first
entry also at the right hand portion was “5/31 AS/258 5.000” (Exh A-4-i-1) and
next entry was “5/13 AS/258 5.000” (Exh A-4-i-2). Gov. Singson explained that the entries meant
that he gave Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) on May 31, 2000 and another
Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) to FPres. Estrada on May 13, 2000, both part
of the jueteng protection money. Gov.
Singson also mentioned that the entries sometimes were not in chronological
order, but they were for the same month.
[Ibid, pp. 55-56]
The June 2000 ledger (Exh A-4-j), the entry at the
right hand portion reads: “6/30
AS/258 3.300”, and the next entry
is “6/15 AS/258 5.000” (Exh A-4-j-2). According to Gov. Singson, these means that
he gave to FPres. Estrada Three Million Three Hundred Thousand (P3,300,000.00)
from jueteng protection money collection on June 30, 2000, and Five Million
Pesos (P5,000,000.00) from the same collection, on June 15, 2000. [Ibid, pp. 56-57]
The succeeding ledgers for July 2000 (Exh A-4-k) the
following entries appear: (1) “7/14 AS/258 2.650” (Exh. “A-4-k-1) and (2) “8/12
AS/258 3.600” (Exh.A-4-k-2). Gov.
Singson explained that the entries mean respectively that he gave the amount of
Two Million Six Hundred Fifty Thousand Pesos (P2,650,000.00) on July 14,2000
and Three Million Six Hundred Thousand Pesos (P3,600,000.00) to FPres. Estrada
as part of jueteng protection money collection. [Ibid, pp.57-58] To the question of why the amounts were less
than P5,000,000.00 on the said occasions, Gov. Singson replied that it so
happened that those were the only cash in his possession when the requests for
money were made and that they stopped jueteng collection because Atong Ang
started with “Pick 2” and later “Bingo 2 Balls” which according to FPres.
Estrada would have a semblance of legality. [Ibid, pp. 59-60]
The ledger for the month of August 2000 (Exh.A-4-L)
contains the entry “8/16 AS/258 3.050”
(Exh. A-4-L-1). Gov. Singson testified
that he gave FPres. Estrada on August 16, 2000 the amount of Three Million
Fifty Thousand Pesos (P3,050,000.00) as part of protection money collected from
jueteng. [Ibid, pp. 62-63] According to Gov.
Singson the President was very strict with money and so they had an auditor and
he checked the ledger monthly so that they could not make any kickback
(“Kupit”) from the jueteng collection. [Ibid, pp. 63-64]
Gov. Singson testified that the jueteng collector for
Bulacan on November and December 1998 was Jessie Viceo. In January 1999 the jueteng collector for
Bulacan was Jinggoy Estrada as shown by the ledger where he was identified as
“Jing” who got One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) (Exh. W7). Viseo and Jinggoy Estrada were friends so the
latter supervised the jueteng collection in Bulacan, although he was residing
in
Gov. Singson considered the biggest among the
expenses charged to the “Tax” the One Million Two Hundred Thousand Pesos
(P1,200,000.00) given to Laarni Enriquez whom Gov. Singson described as the
most beloved or favorite of FPres. Estrada [Ibid, p. 75]. According to Gov. Singson, he was assessed,
like other persons who attended the birthday party of Laarni, the aforesaid
P1,200,000.00 as his share in the price of the necklace birthday gift amounting
to Thirteen Million Pesos (P13,000,000.00) for Laarni. Jaime Dichaves collected the said amount from
Gov. Singson after the party. Gov.
Singson paid by check which was deposited in the account of Laarni at PSBank.
[Ibid, pp. 76-81] It was Congressman
Mark Jimenez who pinpointed the guests who would share (P1,200,000.00) each for
the gift for Laarni after they had just finished playing mahjong with FPres.
Estrada during the party. [Ibid, p. 84] Gov.
Singson charged the P1,200,000.00 as “tax” in the jueteng collection because it
was “a big amount of money”. [Ibid, pp.
87-88]
In the early part of the year 2000, FPres. Estrada
instructed Gov. Singson to transfer Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00)
of jueteng money to Serapio. The instruction was given by FPres. Estrada to Gov.
Singson in
Gov. Singson testified that Serapio was the trusted
lawyer of FPres. Estrada who formed fake corporations for FPres. Estrada which
Serapio would narrate to Gov. Singson when they often see each other in
Gov. Singson delivered jueteng money to FPresident
Estrada in a black bag, like an attaché case.
He delivered money at the houses of FPres. Estrada, particularly once at
Atty. Kenneth S. Tampal of the office of the Senate
Legal Counsel brought the black bag referred to by Gov. Singson which was
marked as Exhibit “MMM” at the Senate Impeachment Proceedings and the set of
ledgers for the period beginning August 1999 to August 2000 (Exhibits A-4 to
A-4-l). The bag was a leatherette
attaché case with two (2) combination locks numbered 000. [Ibid, pp.
103-105] According to Atty. Tampal, the
exhibits are in the custody of the Office of the Senate Legal Counsel. [Ibid,
p. 110]
Gov. Singson testified that the abovementioned black
bag (Exh. O8) was one of the black bags which they used to deliver
money to FPres. Estrada in
The bills placed in the bag were in One Thousand
Pesos (P1,000.00) denomination. Many times Singson himself delivered the
jueteng money to FPres. Estrada in
The total amount of money Gov. Singson collected from
jueteng operations for FPresident Estrada starting November 1998 to August 2000
was Five Hundred Forty Million Pesos (P540,000,000.00) more or less, according
to Gov. Singson.
Gov. Singson personally delivered about Two Hundred
Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00) to FPres. Estrada. [Ibid, p. 124-125]
In the ledger for March 1999 (Exh AAAAAAAA), the
entry “Bicol15 1.100” means in the
While jueteng protection money collection started in
September 1998, the ledger started only in November 1998 when Gov. Singson
alone was asked to continue the jueteng collection. [Ibid, pp. 128-129]
In the July 2000 ledger (Exh. A-4-k), the total
amount of jueteng collection and the total amount of expenses were the same so
the balance at the end of the month was zero because “Pick 2” replaced jueteng,
as Gov. Singson, Dante Tan and FPres. Estrada discussed in Malacañang and in
his new home at New Manila called “Boracay”. “Pick 2” was the brainchild of
Dante Tan and “Bingo 2 Ball” was the
brainchild of Atong Ang. [Ibid, pp. 129-132]
In “Boracay”, Bong Pineda told Dante Tan, Gov. Singson and FPres.
Estrada that “Pick 2” may be hard to be understood by the people because there
will be 75 numbers. [Ibid, p. 134]
In August 2000, “Pick 2” started and, in September
2000, before his departure for the
According to the son of Gov. Singson, Atong Ang told
him that he had the provincial commander transferred and the Chief of Police
replaced. His father could not do
anything to stop “Bingo 2 Balls” as it was decided by FPres. Estrada and his
political career was finish. Gov.
Singson talked with Atong Ang when he was in
Gov. Singson then asked his lawyers to prepare his
affidavit because he knew that his life would be in danger if he would part
ways with FPres. Estrada, who was very powerful and Gov. Singson had no
evidence. Gov. Singson then called
Ricaforte and asked her to fax to him the ledger. Ricaforte asked if they were going to
Malacañang. Gov. Singson knew that
Ricaforte did not know yet what was happening.
After she faxed the ledger from her house to Gov. Singson, the latter
asked his lawyer to continue with the preparation of his affidavit. Gov. Singson said he prepared the affidavit
so that if anything happened to him it would be known who was responsible. When asked if he was threatened, Gov. Singson
replied that he knew FPres. Estrada and the men around him so he knew that his
life was in danger. [Ibid, pp. 146-150]
The first set of ledgers was faxed to Singson, while
the second set (Exhs. A-4 to A-4-1) was in the possession of Ricaforte which
she produced during the impeachment proceedings. The prosecution would have the latter
subpoenaed fom the Senate. Everyone that
Gov. Singson consulted gave the same comment. Nobody will believe Gov. Singson
because FPres. Estrada was the most popular President elected. Gov. Singson talked with Jinggoy
Estrada. Gov. Singson told Jinggoy
Estrada that his family got One Hundred Thirty Million Pesos (P130,000,000.00)
from him and that Jinggoy Estrada got part of the said money. Gov. Singson also told Jinggoy Estrada that
jueteng money all went to his father and that Jinggoy Estrada also had a part
of it. Jinggoy Estrada told Gov. Singson,
they would fix it. [Ibid, pp. 147-155]
Nothing happened so Gov. Singson talked with JV
Ejercito, another son of FPres. Estrada.
JV Ejercito asked Gov. Singson not to come out and that he will talk
with his father. Again nothing happened
so Gov. Singson approached Secretary Ronnie Zamora and showed him the
ledger. The latter reacted that the
ledger was a serious matter, “Delikado ito”.
After Secretary Angara, Gov. Singson also approached
Congressman Mark Jimenez, who said after he met with FPres. Estrada, General
Lacson and Secretary Ronnie Zamora that “Bingo 2 Balls” will not stop in Ilocos
Sur but that Gov. Singson should lie low first.
Gov. Singson replied that he had decided already to come out and he
informed his mayors that he will expose the anomalies involving FPres.
Estrada. Gov. Singson talked with
Jimenez over the phone when he was then at Holiday Inn on October 3, 2000. There was a conference of the Mayors League
in the
PAOC men signaled Gov. Singson to get out of his
vehicle, a bullet-proof Ford Super Van but he refused. He went out of the van after the mayors
arrived one after another. The PAOC team
told Gov. Singson that they received information that he had a blinker that,
although he did not use it, mere possession was already a violation and that
they wanted to bring this to Crame and after he suggested that he be given a
ticket of the volation but he instead asked that they go to the police
precincts at the United Nations Avenue.
Only the two TMG Officers went to the police precinct with Gov. Singson
who rode in his own van. There were
media people at the police precinct.
When asked why he was being harassed although he was influencial to the
FPres. Estrada, Gov. Singson replied to the media that he will expose the anomalies
of FPres. Estrada. [Ibid, pp. 20-26]
The following day the incident was published in the
newspapers and shown on television. The
group of FPres. Esrada tried to settle with Singson. JV Ejercito was the first to call repeatedly
(every two minutes) to ask Gov. Singson to return the call of FPres. Estrada, Gov.
Singson called the latter who asked that they talk because he was confused with
the problems of the Abu Sayyaf and the First Lady. Gov. Singson replied he had already given his
word. They talked for the second time
and then third time, it was FPres. Estrada himself who called. The next person to call was Atong Ang who was
pleading to Gov. Singson to fix the matter.
Gov. Singson brought up the P130 Million from the excise tax which Gov.
Singson said was taken by Atong Ang and FPres. Estrada. Atong Ang promised that the said amount will
be returned to Gov. Singson and that the “Bingo 2 Balls” will be given to Gov.
Singson. Gov. Singson informed him that
it was too late. Atong Ang called Gov.
Singson about twenty (20) times [Ibid, pp. 27-37]
After Atong Ang, Former Secretary Alfredo Lim called
to convince Gov. Singson to settle and to see FPres. Estrada. Alfredo Lim asked Gov. Singson to proceed
with the press conference but he should put the blame on Atong Ang and that
they will take care of Atong Ang.
Alfredo Lim gestured with his right fist thumb down. Gov. Singson understood this to mean that
Atong Ang will be killed. Gov. Singson
did not agree because he might be implicated.
He asked them to look for a good reason. [Ibid, pp. 38-42)
The next to call Gov. Singson was Jinggoy
Estrada. The latter and Gov. Singson
talked on October 8, 2000. Jinggoy
Estrada also sent many emissaries to talk with Gov. Singson. That evening Gov. Singson went to Cardinal
Sin at his San Miguel Residence. Gov.
Singson explained to Cardinal Sin the situation and left to him the evidences
so that in case anything happens to Gov. Singson, he would know who will be
responsible. Gov. Singson saw the
Cardinal with his sisters. Cardinal Sin
told Gov. Singson to go ahead that he will pray for Gov. Singson and that God
will be with them. [Ibid, pp. 42-26]
Gov. Singson returned to his house at 10:00 o’clock
in the evening where Jinggoy Estrada called him and sent emissaries again to Gov.
Singson. At 12:00 midnight Jinggoy
Estrada and some friends of his arrived at Gov. Singson’s house in Blue Ridge,
Gov. Singson proceeded with his press conference on
October 9, 2000 at Club Filipino. He
gave the two reasons: first, FPres. Estrada insulted him and wanted him killed
so he was not a true friend anymore; and second, he already had the evidence
and they will kill him even if he did not pursue his planned press
conference. It was better for him to be
killed with honor and to show how corrupt the government was under the Estrada
Administration. According to Gov.
Singson, FPres. Estrada wanted to replace jueteng with “Bingo-2-Balls” because
he will earn more, about Fifty Million Pesos (P50,000,000.00) a day. Gov. Singson explained how much FPres.
Estrada would receive from “Bingo 2 Balls”. [Ibid, pp. 51-59]
Gov. Singson also mentioned that FPres. Estrada owned
the “
Gov. Singson testified as to the other properties of
FPres. Estrada like Fontainbleau, Inc., a casino. A check (Exh. V6) payable the
order of Fonteinbleau, Inc. was among the checks turned over to Ricaforte. Gov. Singson helped put up the said casino
for FPres. Estrada. However, his name
does not appear as an incorporator of the said company in its Articles of
Incorporation (Exh. 22). According to Gov.
Singson, the shares in the company were distributed as follows: five percent
(5%) to Butch Tenorio, the President of the casino; twenty-five percent (25%)
for Gov. Singson; seventy percent (70%) for FPres. Estrada which were placed in
the names of Jaime Dichaves and his classmate Susie Pineda. [Ibid, pp. 72-76]
To prove his close relationship with FPres. Estrada, Gov.
Singson mentioned that Jacob, a son of the FPres. Estrada by Laarni Enriquez,
was his baptismal godson while FPres. Estrada stood as sponsor (in the wedding
with his two children, Racquel and Randy). [Ibid, pp.76-78]
On cross examination, Gov. Singson was confronted
with his testimony during the Senate impeachment trial, contained in the
transcript of the stenographic notes of the proceedings held on December 13,
2000 at pages 234 and 235 (Exh. 28-Serapio and submarkings). In the said
testimony, Gov. Singson did not mention that Serapio was present when he turned
over to Ricaforte the jueteng protection money, partly in cash and partly in
check. [TSN dated July 29, 2002, pp.
147-150] Gov. Singson insisted that Serapio was present but he was being
confused by the Senators sympathetic to FPres. Estrada. It appears, however,
that Singson was not asked during impeachment proceedings who were present
during the aforementioned turn-over of jueteng protection money. [Ibid, pp.
150-151] Gov. Singson also testified that he did not know if Ricaforte withdrew
the amount in cash. Gov. Singson was only told by Ricaforte that she gave the
Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00) to Serapio. [Ibid, pp. 153-156 Gov. Singson also admitted that the P200,000,000.00
were transferred to the Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. [Ibid, p. 156] and that
he likewise testified before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee on October 17,
2000, as shown by the transcript of Stenographic Notes of the hearing of that
Committee (Exh. 29 and submarkings). Ibid, pp. 158-159]. Gov. Singson acknowledged that he had came
across the Certificate of Incorporation and By-Laws of the Erap Muslim Youth
Foundation, Inc. (Exh 1-Serapio and submarkings). The said foundation’s Certificate of
Incorporation was dated November 17, 2000, and that the Articles of
Incorporation was dated February 15, 2000. [Ibid, pp. 167-168] Gov. Singson saw for the first time during
his cross-examination the certification of the Branch Manager of Equitable-PCI
Bank that the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. maintained an account in the
total amount of Two Hundred Three Million One Hundred Thirty-Six Thousand Nine
Hundred Thirty-One Pesos and Twenty Seven Centavos (P203,136,931.27) (Exh 17;
17-a-Serapio). [Ibid, p. 169]
EMMA BARBON LIM (Emma Lim) worked for Gov.
Singson since July 1987 as Liaison Officer at the latter’s private office in
As
early as January 1999, Emma Lim was already receiving deliveries of jueteng
money. Gov. Singson told her to take
care of the money that she was receiving because it was not the money of Gov.
Singson but of FPres. Estrada. She
started collecting jueteng money sometime in April 1999. She personally went to the person from whom
she collected the money. She knew that
it was jueteng money because Gov. Singson told her so and that it was also confirmed
by Ricaforte.
She
also knew that it was jueteng money because there was an instance that
Ricaforte scolded her for opening an envelope.
Ricaforte told her that it was strictly confidential and it was intended
for FPres. Estrada. Emma Lim also
personally delivered jueteng money to Malacañang.
According
to Emma Lim, Ricaforte was the accountant-auditor of FPres. Estrada. This was how she was introduced by Gov.
Singson to her and how she introduced herself when she reported at the LCS
Office. Ricaforte also held office in
the same address. Emma Lim’s other
co-employee was Menchu Itchon. [TSN dated July 1, 2002, pp. 12-17]
Witness
testified that she collected jueteng money from Undersecretary (USec) Anton
Prieto, Jinggoy Estrada and Bong Pineda.
USec
Anton Prieto was the Presidential Assistant for Bicol Affairs. He was the one in charge of jueteng
collection in the Bicol Area. Witness
met Prieto personally and he introduced himself to the witness as such. Every time he called the office, he always
said that he was an Undersecretary in Malacañang.
Sometime on April 1999, Emma Lim met Prieto at the
lobby of Dusit Hotel Nikko in
Three
days after the check was deposited, the New Accounts Department of the
Metrobank Ayala branch informed Emma Lim that the check was dishonored because
the signature was different. The check
was returned through Usec Prieto’s messenger.
Emma
Lim usually deposited the PNB Naga Branch checks from Prieto in the Account No.
0963011682260 of Gov. Singson. The
deposit slips (Exhibits I7 to Q7 and submarkings) listed
the deposits.
At
one time, Ricaforte scolded her for opening the envelope because it was
strictly confidential and that it was for FPres. Estrada. Ricaforte took the check from the Emma Lim.
[Ibid, pp. 17-56]
Ricaforte
first reported at the LCS building on April 16, 1999. She introduced herself as the
accountant-auditor of FPres. Estrada. Gov.
Singson also introduced her as such.
Emma
Lim collected jueteng money twice from Bong Pineda, who was in charge of the
jueteng collections in Pampanga because Gov. Singson told her so.
Sometime
on January 2000, upon instruction of Gov. Singson, Emma Lim and Gov. Singson’s
driver Faustino Prudencio went to the house of Bong Pineda at
The
second time Emma Lim collected money from Bong Pineda was sometime on February
2000. They were on their way home after
collecting money from Jinggoy Estrada.
Menchu Itchon called her and told her that Gov. Singson wanted her to
drop by the house of Mr. Bong Pineda to pick-up money. Emma Lim proceeded and Marty again ushered
her to the office room. Romy Pineda
arrived. He opened what appeared to be a
bookshelf and came out with a red Salvatore Ferragamo shopping bag (Exhibit R7)
containing P5,000,000.00. The money was
in P1,000 bills and in 5 bundles containing P1,000,000.00 each. Romy Pineda asked her to sign a paper that
she received the amount. She kept the
money in the vault assigned to her at the LCS office. She informed Gov. Singson that she received
the money from Bong Pineda, and Gov.
Singson told her that he will pass by for it. [Ibid, pp. 58-80]
She
collected jueteng money from Jinggoy Estrada three times. These were sometime in January, February 2000
and March 17, 2000.
For
the first collection, Gov. Singson called her up at the LCS office and told her
to call the office of Mayor Jinggoy Estrada to inquire if she can pick up what
was to be picked up. The staff of
Jinggoy Estrada who answered the phone told her to go there after lunch. Witness left the office at 1:00 o’clock with
the driver of Gov. Singson and proceeded to the office of Mayor Jinggoy Estrada
at the second floor of the Municipal Hall of San Juan, Metro Manila.
When
she arrived at the office, the staff at the receiving section gave her a sheet
of paper where she wrote her name and office.
The bodyguard of Jinggoy Estrada arrived and handed to her something
which was wrapped in a magazine and sealed with scotch tape. The bodyguard told her not to count the money
because there were many people around.
She then brought the package back to the LCS office and kept it in the
vault. She called Gov. Singson and told
him that she already picked up the money from Jinggoy Estrada. When Gov. Singson arrived, witness counted
the money in his presence and it was P1,000,000.00 which she turned over to Gov.
Singson.
Sometime
in February 2000, she again collected jueteng money from Jinggoy Estrada. Gov. Singson called her up and instructed her
to call up the office of Jinggoy Estrada.
She was able to talk to Jinggoy Estrada’s secretary Josie and was told
to go to their office after lunch.
Josie ushered her inside the office of Jinggoy
Estrada. Jinggoy Estrada was there. Witness
greeted him a good afternoon and he smiled.
Josie asked her to sit in front of her table which was about 4 to 5
meters away from Jinggoy Estrada. Josie
took up a paper bag from under her table and placed it on top of the
table. She asked the witness to count
the contents. The witness counted that
there were ten (10) bundles of P1,000.00 bills. Each bundle had 100 pieces and
the total amount was P1,000,000.00. She
then asked permission to leave. After
coming from the office of Jinggoy Estrada, they proceeded to the house of Bong
Pineda.
She collected jueteng money for the third time from
Jinggoy Estrada on March 17, 2000. She
again went to the office of Jinggoy Estrada after lunch after contacting
Josie. When she arrived there, she was
ushered inside the office of Jinggoy Estrada.
She can no longer remember the number of staff inside the office. It was
Josie who told her to sit down in front of the table of Jinggoy Estrada. Jinggoy Estrada took out a check from his
wallet and gave it to her saying, “Sabihin
mo kay Gob tseke na lang.” Emma Lim
then kept the check inside her bag. The
amount was P1,000,000.00 with United Overseas Bank
According to the witness, the check was personalized
because it bore the picture of Jinggoy Estrada at the background. Emma Lim had seen this kind of check of Gov.
Singson. [Ibid, pp. 82-111] Emma Lim
maintained her testimony notwithstanding that she was shown a certification
dated December 11, 2000 issued by Isabelita M. Papa, Executive Vice President
of United Overseas Bank of the
She
knew that the money she kept in the vault assigned to her were jueteng
collections because Governor Singson and Ricaforte told her so. [TSN dated July
1, 2002, p. 81]
On July 3, 2002, Emma B. Lim continued her direct
examination and testified that she personally met FPres. Estrada when she
delivered jueteng money to Malacanang. As instructed by Gov. Singson, she was
fetched by Singson’s driver, personal aide and security guard at Singson’s
office at LCS. She boarded the Ford
Expedition when they passed by the LCS office.Singson called to ask Emma Lim to
double check the money inside the car if it was Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00).
Gov. Singson’s driver Faustino
Prudencio, personal aide Jemis Singson and security guard Frederico Artates
were inside the car too when she bundle count the money. They proceeded to the
residence of FPres. Estrada at
On cross-examination, Emma Lim testified that she
worked for Gov. Singson since 1987. She started living at LCS Office since 1989
until she got married in 1996. She did not pay rent just like the other
employees of Singson. She was not related to Singson. Her brother Roy Barbon
worked as driver for Singson between 1990 and 1992. She did not feel beholden to Gov. Singson
because she worked for her salary. She did not owe him a debt of gratitude but
it should be the other way around because she got embroiled in this trouble
because of jueteng collections. [Ibid, pp. 296-308]
Emma Lim attended a dinner at
MARIA
CARMENCITA ANCHETA ITCHON (Itchon), a Certified Public Accountant,
testified that she was hired by Gov. Singson to be an accountant of Fountain
Bleau Incorporated (later renamed Fontain Bleau Incorporated) on February 19,
1999. According to Itchon, the said corporation, which was set-up to build a
casino in Clark Air Base, Pampanga, was owned by former President Estrada.
Witness knew that this was owned by Estrada because Gov. Singson said so and it
was confirmed by Mrs. Ricaforte. [TSN, June 17, 2002, pp. 115-118]
She allegedly knew that Fontain Bleau Incorporated
got its funding from the jueteng collections
of FPres. Estrada because Gov. Singson would always tell her to wait for the jueteng collection of FPres. Estrada
every time she asked for funds. [Ibid, pp. 119-122]
As Accountant, she was the one who made the listings
of the pre-operation and expenses of Fontain Bleau and during that time she was
the Accountant, she already received jueteng
collections for FPres. Estrada.
Itchon further testified that she received jueteng collections, amounting to a
total of around Six Million Pesos (P6,000,000.00) in cash and check, about six
(6) times. She received these jueteng collections from the messengers
of Mr. Anton Prieto and former San Juan Mayor Jinggoy Estrada or Jingle
Bells. After receiving the collections,
she would inform Gov. Singson and then either Gov. Singson took the collection
from her or they turned it over to Mrs. Yolanda Ricaforte.
Itchon identified Fontain Bleu’s original Certificate
of Incorporation (Exh. P6) and the Articles of Incorporation and By
Laws attached (Exh. P6-1), which were in her possession. These
incorporation documents showed the date of Fontain Bleau’s registration with
the Securities and Exchange Commission (April 5, 1999), the names of its
incorporators, and its office address at the 2nd Floor,
Itchon averred that before she personally met Yolanda
Ricaforte at the office in LCS, Ricaforte used to call their office and
introduced herself as the Accountant – Auditor for FPres. Estrada. As early as March 19, 1999, Singson told
Itchon that she would be working with Yolanda Ricaforte, the Accountant of
FPres. Estrada. Ricaforte began to report for work in the same office as Itchon
on April 16, 1999. [Ibid, pp. 129-132, 138-141]
Singson and Ricaforte told Itchon that Ricaforte will
be her [Itchon’s] immediate supervisor.
Ricaforte checked Itchon’s entries in her journal. Ricaforte signed the
check that Itchon prepared for payment for the supplier of Fontain Bleau and
Ricaforte brought Itchon every time she went to the Pampanga office.
Itchon proceeded to narrate how in the course of
their work she and Ricaforte became close and had many conversations including
among others how FPres. Estrada came to appoint Ricaforte’s husband Orestes
Ricaforte as undersecretary of Tourism and how FPres. Estrada gifted Orestes
with the Black Lexus that Yolanda and Itchon usually used in traveling to the
Pampanga office. Itchon had photographs of gatherings she attended with
Ricaforte (Exh. A-6-vvvvv). [Ibid, pp. 143-152]
Itchon knew Ricaforte to be the Accountant–Auditor of
FPres. Estrada in Fontain Bleau Incorporated and for jueteng collections because Ricaforte reported directly to FPres.
Estrada. Itchon then narrated how on June 15, 1999, she and Mrs. Regina Lim
(one of the incorporators of Fontain Bleau) brought Ricaforte to Malacañang at
around 3:30 p.m. They brought her there because Ricaforte said she would report
to FPres. Estrada. Before going to
Malacañang, Ricaforte took their records of Fontain Bleau, got Itchon’s journal
and the list of expenses and then Itchon briefed her regarding their expenses. [Ibid,
pp. 155-162]
Itchon also testified that Ricaforte also reported to
FPres. Estrada by phone, sometimes using the landline in the office and
sometimes using her [Ricaforte’s] cell phone.
Itchon knew that the calls were made to FPres. Estrada because she was
around when Ricaforte was making calls, and Ricaforte would ask her to keep
quiet because she was calling the President. The calls were made inside the LCS
office.
Itchon explained that she knew that the cell phone
number of Ricaforte was 0918-9021847 because the number was originally issued
in Itchon’s name. The cell phone was supposed to be hers. When they were in Fontain Bleau, they bought
cell phones and the application form for the number was under Itchon’s name.
Itchon was the one who assigned it to herself.
But when the cell phones came, Itchon testified that Ricaforte took the
cell phone no. 0918-9021847 and the number 0918-9021849 originally assigned to
Ricaforte went to Itchon. Itchon also testified that Ricaforte called up
Estrada in her presence about five times.
Itchon prepared a summary of the calls (Exh. R6
with submarkings) made by Ricaforte. Itchon explained that these were the
summary of phone calls of Ricaforte to FPres. Estrada at the presidential
residence; to Mayor Jinggoy Estrada or Jingle Bells, to Mr. Edward Serapio, to
Governor Singson and to Mr. Romy Pineda, the brother of Bong Pineda. She took the information from the fifteen
(15) Statements of Account of Ricaforte for her cell number 0918-9021847. The phone billings of Ricaforte particularly
with reference to cell phone no. 0918-9021847 were with Itchon. [Ibid, pp.
163-175]
Itchon averred that she prepared or came up with a
summary of calls made by Mrs. Ricaforte upon the advice of her lawyer Atty.
Pablito Sanidad because when she and Mrs. Ricaforte testified in the Senate
Blue Ribbon Hearing Committee, Mrs. Ricaforte testified that she seldom or
never called up President Joseph Estrada, Mr. Jinggoy Estrada, Atty. Edward
Serapio, Governor Singson and Mr. Romy Pineda. Itchon also testified that when
she prepared the summary based on the entries on the particular phone billings,
she found out several phone calls to those persons mentioned. [TSN, June 19, 2002, pp. 8-12]
Fifteen (15) Statements of Account (Exhs. S6,
S6-1 up to S6-14) issued by Smart communications were
also identified by Itchon purporting to be statements of account of Cell phone
No. 0918-9021847. The Statements of
Account covered the billing period ending July 1999 and billing period ending
August 31, 2000. The billing statements of account were received by Itchon from
the company for her to pay. The cell
phone bills were being paid by Fontain Bleau, but when Fontain Bleau ceased to
exist, the phone bills were paid by Ricaforte with money from jueteng collections. [Ibid, pp. 15-18]
Itchon affirmed that she was present during Mrs.
Ricaforte’s phone call to the presidential residence in five instances. During
these times, Mrs. Ricaforte was at the LCS office and Itchon was either beside
her or in front of Mrs. Ricaforte’s office table. Itchon pointed out in the sketch (Exh. Q6)
she prepared where she was during the five times when the calls were made in
her presence.
The number or numbers Ricaforte called up were
736-8855 and 736-8858. Itchon testified
that she knew that the numbers pertain to the numbers in the Presidential
Residence because they had office records and she also tried calling the
number. When she dialed the numbers she
asked if it was the PMS. The answer was it was the Presidential Residence. When
asked why Itchon checked and called the numbers in the first place, she
answered that when she checked Mrs. Ricaforte’s cell phone bills, she found out
that the numbers were there so she tried calling to check whether it was the
Presidential Residence.
When asked what was the nature or gist of the
conversation from the end of Mrs. Ricaforte when she called up the Presidential
residence, Itchon answered that Mrs. Ricaforte said: “Malou, this is Yolly. Is
the President already calling for me? If he needed me, just call me on the cell
phone.” According to Itchon, Malou was the secretary of FPres. Estrada and
Itchon knew this because it was Mrs. Ricaforte who told her. [Ibid., pp. 18-23]
According to Itchon, there were also calls made to
former San Juan Mayor Jinggoy Estrada and, in her summary, Ricaforte called up
Mayor Jinggoy Estrada twenty-four (24) times.
On at least five occasions, Itchon testified that she was present when
Ricaforte called up Jinggoy Estrada while they [Itchon and Ricaforte] were both
in the LCS office. Itchon distinctly remembered two dates of Ricaforte’s phone
calls to Mayor Jinggoy Estrada – (a) August 16, 1999 when Ricaforte called up
Jinggoy in his residence because that was the first call of Ricaforte when she
started concentrating as the accountant-auditor of former President Estrada in
his “jueteng” collections; and (b)
November 15, 1999 because Ricaforte called up Mayor Jinggoy several times as
they were waiting for Mayor Jinggoy’s jueteng collection from which they would
get their salaries.
The cell phone number of Jinggoy Estrada was
0917-526-0217 and his landline number was 724-4736. Itchon knew that these numbers pertain to
Jinggoy Estrada because she got the numbers from Gov. Singson. She got the number because she wanted to
check the cell phone bills of Ricaforte because there were times that she
remembered that Ricaforte had been calling the number of Jinggoy Estrada which
Itchon was not aware of. [Ibid, pp. 23-28]
Based on Itchon’s as well as the phone billings,
Ricaforte called up Atty. Edward Serapio six (6) times at cell phone No.
0918-9012071. Itchon also got the number
of Atty. Serapio from Gov. Singson.
Based on the Smart Communications phone billings, Ricaforte called up
Atty. Serapio on March 23 and 24, 2000, and April 3, 12, 13, and 14, 2000. (Exh.
S6 with submarkings) [Ibid., pp. 29-35]
According to Itchon’s summary, Mrs. Ricaforte called
up Gov. Singson 209 times at cell phone nos. 0917-8387171 and
0918-9002443. Itchon was present several
times when Ricaforte called up Gov. Singson.
Itchon knew that these numbers pertained to Gov. Singson because she was
familiar with these cell phone numbers. [Ibid, pp. 37-38]
Itchon also testified to calls made by Ricaforte to a
certain Romy Pineda, the brother Bong Pineda, whom she knew was a jueteng lord.
Itchon testified that Ricaforte called up Romy Pineda in his landline number,
722-7366. Based on the Summary that
Itchon prepared, Ricaforte called up Romy Pineda twice. [Ibid, pp. 38-39]
Itchon further testified that Fontain Bleau, Inc. was
not able to operate because Fontain Bleau could not comply with PAGCOR’s
requirement for a 200-room hotel accommodation so it was not issued a license
to operate.
After the non-issuance of the license to operate,
Fontain Bleau entered into a Memorandum of Agreement with RN Development
Corporation on July 19, 1999 (Exhs. T6, T6-1 to T6-2).
The Memorandum of Agreement (“MOA”) stipulated that RN Development Corporation
will reimburse all the pre-operations expenses of Fontain Bleau and that
Fontain Bleau will have a 10% share from the casino that will be established by
RN Development Corporation. Itchon was present during the signing of the
MOA. She identified the signatures of
the witnesses to the MOA; namely, a certain Pax who was introduced to Itchon as
Atong Ang’s sister (Exh. T6-2-c) and Yolanda Ricaforte (Exh. T6-2-d).
Itchon testified that she came to know Atong Ang during the negotiation of the
MOA and that Atong Ang was present during the signing.
As
far as Itchon knew, the pre-operational expenses of Fontain Bleau was around
Sixty Five Million Pesos (P65,000,000.00).
This was reimbursed by RN Development Corporation to Fontain Bleau
pursuant to their Memorandum of Agreement.
Itchon brought with her a copy of RN's deposit slip and their first
payment in the amount of Thirty Million Pesos (P30,000,000.00) (Exh. U6)
and testified that the depositor’s signature therein was Emma Lim’s, one of the
secretaries in the LCS office. Itchon
also had a photocopies of the second check that RN paid to Fontain Bleau in the
amount of Thirty Four Million Six Hundred Forty Thousand Four Hundred and Forty
Two Pesos (P34,640,442.00) (Exh. V6) and of the acknowledgement
receipt (Exh. V6-1) signed by Ricaforte and Atty. Manuel Singson, as
Director and Corporate Secretary, respectively of Fontain Bleau. Itchon further
testified that Ricaforte got the originals of these documents but Itchon had
them photocopied for her record before Ricaforte took the originals.
Since
Fontain Bleau was unable to operate, all the employees of Fontain Bleau in the
Pampanga office were terminated. It was
only Itchon and Mrs. Ricaforte who were retained. [Ibid, pp. 39-58]
In
August 1999, Ricaforte already concentrated on being the accountant-auditor of
FPres. Estrada in his “jueteng” operation and then Itchon was told by Gov.
Singson to help Ricaforte. Nothing
happened to Fontain Bleau anymore. Itchon allegedly knew that in August 1999,
Ricaforte concentrated in the jueteng collection because Itchon was there when
Gov. Singson briefed Ricaforte regarding the collection of the jueteng
operation and she [Ricaforte] was given the code name “Madam Auring” by Gov.
Singson. [Ibid, pp. 58-60]
Itchon’s
testimony then detailed how she participated in the “jueteng” collections. She
was tasked to receive the “jueteng” collections that were brought to the
office. There were also times when Itchon or Emma Lim were called by Ricaforte
to help compute and count the money turned over to Ricaforte such as double
checking through a calculator. Collections that Itchon received were brought by
messengers of Mr. Anton Prieto and sometimes by the messengers of Gov. Singson
who picked up the jueteng collections from Mayor Jinggoy Estrada. Itchon knew Prieto’s messenger because when
the messenger came, the checks were inside the white envelope with markings
“Menchu/Emma” and then the messenger introduced himself as messenger of Anton
Prieto. Itchon was also present when Gov. Singson was giving instructions to
his messengers to get jueteng collections from Mayor Jinggoy Estrada. Gov.
Singson’s messengers were Mr. Jamis Singson and Edward Iverra. Each collection
was One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) per collection in cash. She remembers
these collections from Mayor Jinggoy Estrada on two (2) occasions because it
was from there that they (Ricaforte, Lim, Itchon and Iverra) took their
salary.
According
to Itchon, these jueteng collections came in around 15th and 30th
of the month. From the time that they
started concentrating on the jueteng collection for the former President on
August 1999, Itchon received these collections about six (6) times, covering the period August 1999 to August
2000. The total collections she received after August 1999 was around Seven
Million Pesos (P7,000,000.00). With
respect to the Seven Million Peso collections that she received, there were
times when Gov. Singson took the collection directly from her and there were
times when Gov. Singson instructed her to turn over the collection to
Ricaforte. As Accountant of Fontain
Bleau, she also received six (6) collections, for the period February 1999 to
July 1999. All in all Itchon averred she
received twelve (12) collections. [Ibid,
pp. 61-66]
Itchon also testified that Emma Lim was the secretary
of Governor Singson and also a co-employee at the LCS Office. Since Emma Lim was also helping in the
jueteng collections, she also received salary from Ricaforte. [Ibid, pp. 71-72]
On
cross examination, Itchon explained that the name of the former President
allegedly did not appear in the Articles of Incorporation of Fontain Bleau
because of his public position and because the source of its funds was illegal
[TSN, June 24, 2002, pp. 19-20]. Emma
Lim, Jamis Singson, Edward Iverra and sometimes Ricaforte collected jueteng
money from Jinggoy Estrada. Jamis Singson turned over to Itchon the jueteng
collection about once or twice in 2000 between January to August 2000. Itchon
testified that they helped Gov. Singson count Five Million pesos
(P5,000,000.00) from the jueteng collections sent through the messengers and
some from the collections of Gov. Singson himself and placed the said amount of
money in a black bag to be brought to FPres. Estrada but she admitted she did
not see the delivery to President Estrada. [Ibid, pp. 23-30, 101]
Itchon
and the others at the office would allegedly wait for the call of Ricaforte to
Jinggoy every pay day because their salaries would come from Jinggoy’s jueteng
collection. Itchon was only present
around five (5) times that Ricaforte called Jinggoy, although Ricaforte called
Jinggoy 24 times. (Ibid, pp. 39-46)
Itchon also mentioned during her cross-examination that Gov. Singson was
reimbursed for the jueteng money advanced to Fontain Bleau when the latter was
acquired by RN Development Corporation.
RN Development Corporation’s partial payment in the amount of Thirty
Million Pesos (P30,000,000.00) was deposited in the account of Fontain Bleau by
Ricaforte and Ricaforte thereafter returned to Singson the said amount through
a Metrobank check payable to Singson. (Exhs. X6, X6-1, X6-2) [Ibid, pp. 125-127; TSN, June 26, 2002, pp. 25-26]
According
to Itchon, the use by Ricaforte of the cell phone no. 0918-9021847 in the name
of Itchon was proven by the cell phone number declared by Ricaforte in the bank
where she deposited money (Ibid, p. 19).
She admitted that she and Emma Lim were appointed by President Arroyo as
Director of John Hay Poro Point Development Corporation on September 2001. (Exh.
26, 26-a to 26-c-1) [TSN, June 26, 2002, pp. 51-56]
On
redirect, Itchon referred to the acknowledgement receipt dated March 12, 1999 (Exh.
Y-6) for the advance rental of Thirty Million Pesos (P30,000,000) as well as
the landscape plan of said company (Exhs. E7, E7-1 to E7-6)
as proof that that original name of Fontain Bleau was spelled Fountain Bleau
Holding, Inc. [Ibid, p. 100]
Smart Communications billings
identified by Itchon were marked as Exhs. X6, X6-1 to X6-2
[Ibid, pp. 101-105]. Itchon also brought to court the journal (Exhs. A7-1
to A7-5) and computerized list (Exh. B7, B7-1
to B7-3) of the pre-operation expenses of Fountain Bleau amounting
to Sixty Five Million (P65,000,000.00) which were reimbursed by RN Development
Corporation. She also presented the
computerized list of said expenses with specifics (Exh. C7, C7-1
to C7-4) and some of the checks of Gov. Singson which were used to
pay the expenses of Fountain Bleau from March 3, 1999 to June 20, 1999 (Exh. D7,
D7-1 to D7-95) The funds of Fountain Bleau were taken by
Gov. Singson from jueteng collections. The check covering part of the
reimbursement to Fountain Bleau in the amount of Thirty Four Million Six
Hundred Forty Thousand Four Hundred and Forty Two Pesos (P34,640,442.00) was
marked as Exh. V6 (with submarkings). [Ibid, pp. 106-117]
VICENTE
RAGIL AMISTAD (Amistad) was a Philippine National Police (PNP)
officer stationed at Vigan City Police Station, assigned to former Gov. Singson
since 1989 until the time of his testimony. On three (3) occasions in 1999 and
2000, Amistad was instructed by Gov. Singson to go to the house of Bong Pineda
at Albany Street, Northeast Greenhills and received from Romy Pineda, Bong
Pineda’s brother, the followings sums of money: Seven Million Seven Hundred
Fifty Thousand Pesos (P7,750,000.00); Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) and Three Million Two Hundred Fifty Pesos
(P3,250,000.00). Amistad would bundle count, place the money in a plastic bag
and bring it to Gov. Singson at LCS building, after signing a receipt prepared
by Romy Pineda. [TSN, September 16, 2002, pp. 15-56]
Amistad also testified that upons instruction of
Singson, he went to the office of then Mayor Jinggoy Estrada at the second
floor of the Municipal Hall of San Juan in 1999. After Mayor Jinggoy Estrada
called up someone, he [Jinggoy] asked Amistad to go down and get what Jinggoy
would give him in front of the Municipal Hall. At the ground floor, the
security guard of Mayor Jinggoy Estrada gave him a package wrapped in a
newspaper with scotch tape, which he brought to Gov. Singson at
JAMIS
BATULAN SINGSON (Jamis) was the personal aide of Gov. Singson,
who was not related to him. Jamis Singson knew FPres Estrada and Gov. Singson
to be close friends who played mahjong and drank together. Jamis Singson was
constantly with Gov. Singson when he delivered jueteng money to FPres Estrada.
[TSN, September 18, 2002, pp. 25-31] Jamis Singson saw Gov. Singson counting
the jueteng money before he placed them in a black bag which he would carry.
Jamis also testified that in March 1999, he, Artates
and driver Prudencio went to the house of Bong Pineda. Artates went inside the
house and when he went out, he was carrying a shopping bag full of money. Jamis
then transferred the money to a black bag which Gov. Singson used to deliver
money to FPres. Estrada. Jamis described the black bag’s measurements and how
it was opened from the top with a combination (lock) ( Exh. “08”).
The money totalled Five Million Pesos (P 5,000,000.00 ) in five (5) bundles of
One Million Pesos ( P1,000,000.00 ) each. They proceed to
Jamis also testified to one occasion in the middle of
1999 when he himself was instructed by Gov. Singson to collect money from the
house of Bong Pineda. That time Jamis received Seven Million Pesos
(P7,000,000.00) in a shopping bag from Romeo “Romy” Pineda. Romy made Jamis
sign a blue book and then Jamis brought the money to Gov. Singson in the
latter’s office. [Ibid, pp. 91-101]
Jamis also testified he collected jueteng money from
Mayor Jinggoy Estrada twice on Gov. Singson’s instructions. For the first
occasion, on or about October 1999 Jamis went to the office of then Mayor
Jinggoy Estrada at the second floor Municipal Hall of San Juan at around 4pm to
5 pm. Inside the said office, Jinggoy Estrada’s bodyguard Nestor showed a sando
plastic bag to Jinggoy Estrada and after that Jamis saw Jinggoy pointing to him
[Jamis]. Jamis brought the plastic bag, which Jamis subsequently saw contained
an indeterminable amount of money, to Singson at the latter’s office. [Ibid,
pp. 105-121]
The second time Jamis collected jueteng money from
Jinggoy Estrada was immediately after the first time, in the evening.Thus, Gov.
Singson instructed Jamis to proceeed to the house of Mayor Jinggoy Estrada in
Greenhills. At Mayor Jinggoy’s house, Jamis again received a plastic sando bag
from “Nestor”. Jamis brought the bag to Gov. Singson’s office and handed it to
Menchu (Ma. Carmencita) Itchon as Gov. Singson instructed. Jamis identified
Menchu in Court. He said she was the companion of Ricaforte in the office.
[Ibid., pp. 121-132]
ATTY. DAVID
JONATHAN
Atty.
Yap was at the back of Yolanda Ricaforte at the Senate Impeachment Trial when
she gave her testimony that the ledger she brought is an ordinary “listahan.” [TSN,
Senate Impeachment Trial, p. 144; see also TSN of these cases,September 25,
2002, pp. 78-79]
Ricaforte
opened one checking account, one savings account, seven special savings
accounts and a PCI Emerald Fund. The
initial amount of deposit in the savings account was Seventeen Million Two
hundred Five Thousand Pesos (P17,205,000.00) as shown by the deposit slip for
Savings Account No. 0517-042227 (Exh. A-6-aa).
The Seventeen Million Two Hundred Ten Thousand Pesos (P17,210,000.00)
was in check payable to cash. The Five
Thousand Pesos (P5,000.00) was deposited in the checking account No.
0107-001638-9 (Exh. A-6-bb) and the balance of Seventeen Million Two Hundred
Five Thousand Pesos (P17,205,000) was deposited in the savings account. [Ibid, pp. 80-85]
There were deposits made on the savings account of
Ricaforte after the initial deposit.
Bank
statements reflected withdrawals (Exhs. A-6-nn to A-6-zz) from the savings
account for the period September 30, 1999 to October 31, 2000. [Ibid, pp.
87-97]
With
respect to the Current Account No. 0107-00638-9, witness identified the
specimen signature card (Exh. A-6-a and A-6) to show that the initial deposit
slip was Five Thousand Pesos (P5,000.00) (Exh. A-6-bb). [Ibid, p. 98]
Ricaforte signed in the presence of
The initial deposit for the First Special Savings
Account No. 0157-90392-6 was Seventy Million Pesos (P70,000,000.00) as shown by
the Special Savings Passbook (Exh. A-6-S3) of Ricaforte dated
December 2, 1999. The account was closed
on April 13, 2000. It had a balance of
Seventy One Million Three Hundred Ninety Thousand Eight Hundred Seventy Five
and Eight Centavos (P71,390,875.08) which was transferred to Ricaforte’s
regular Savings Account. [Ibid, pp. 22-24, 43]
In
the Second Special Savings Account covered by Special Savings Passbook No.
392093 dated February 7, 2000 (Exh. A-6-X3) showed the initial
deposit of Ten Million Pesos (P10,000,000.00) was taken from the regular
savings account. A withdrawal of the
whole amount of Ten Million One Hundred Thirteen Thousand Eight Hundred Thirty
Six Pesos and Fifty Seven Centavos (P10,113,836.57) was made on April 13, 2000
reflected in the Credit Advice dated April 13, 2000 (Exh. A-6-ZZZ). [Ibid, pp.
49-60]
The
Third Special Savings Account was opened on March 29, 2000 for Two Million Five
Hundred Thousand Pesos (P2,500,000.00).
The money was taken from her regular Savings Account No.
0157-04427-0. The amount of Two Million
Five Hundred One Thousand Six Hundred Sixty Six Pesos and Sixty Six Centavos
(P2,501,666.66) was withdrawn from the special savings account as shown by the
certified true copy of the Credit Advice dated April 13, 2000 (Exh. A-6-C4).
[Ibid, pp. 84, 93-95]
The Fourth Special Savings Account No. 3157-00073-9
covered by the Special Savings Passbook No. 392178 (Exh A-6-E4) had
an initial deposit of Nine Million Seven Hundred Thousand Pesos (P9,700,000.00)
as found in the deposit receipt dated April 5, 2000 (Exh A-6-D4). On April 13, 2000, the Special Savings was
cancelled and preterminated. The amount of Nine Million Seven Hundred Three
Thousand (P9,703,000) was credited to Savings Account No. 0157-04227-0. [Ibid, pp. 115-124]
The Fifth Special Savings Account (Exh. A-6-G4)
which was opened on May 29, 2000 under the name of Yolanda T. Ricaforte had an
initial deposit of Two Million Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (P2,500,000.00). The initial deposit was withdrawn from her
regular Savings Account. The Special Savings was closed on September 4, 2000
and the amount of Two Million Five Hundred Fifty Nine Thousand Four Hundred
Eleven Pesos and Twenty Centavos (P2,559,411.20) was credited to her Regular
Savings Account 0157-04227-0. [Ibid, pp. 128-129, 135, 138]
The Sixth Special Savings Account (Exh. A-6-L4),
under the name of Yolanda T. Ricaforte, was opened on May 4, 2000 for One
Million Nine Hundred Thousand Pesos (P1,900,000.00). The account was closed on September 4, 2000
as per Debit Advice dated September 4, 2000 (Exh. A-6-P4) for the
matured Special Savings Account worth Two Million Twenty Two Thousand Four
Hundred Twenty Nine Pesos and Eighteen Centavos (P2,022,429.18). [Ibid, pp.
147–153]
The Seventh Special Savings Account No. 3157-00088-7
dated June 1, 2000 (Exh. A-6-Q4) was worth Two Million Pesos
(P2,000,000.00) in cash. The account was
closed on September 4, 2000 and the proceeds were credited to the Regular
Savings Account No. 0157-04227-0. The balance (Exh. A-6-T4) then was
Two Million Thirty Five Thousand Thirty Five Pesos and Ninety One Centavos
(P2,035,035.91). [Ibid, pp. 156, 166]
The PCI Emerald Fund was in the amount of Six Million
Six Hundred Sixteen Thousand Six Hundred Seventy Six Pesos and Nineteen
Centavos (P6,616,676.19) (Exh. A-6-U4 and Exh. A-6-V4). The fund was then rolled-over monthly as
evidenced by the Confirmation letter (Exh. A-6-Z4) dated December 6,
2000. It was again rolled-over several
times until it was redeemed on June 5, 2002. [Ibid, p. 168, 176 -193]
The first four Special Savings Accounts were all debited
on April 13, 2000 and Ricaforte purchased a Cashier’s Check payable to Cash for
Ninety One Million Pesos (P91,000,000).
The Application for Cashier’s check (Exh. “A-6- R5”) was
signed by Ricaforte as purchaser. The Cashier’s check (Exh. A-6- S5
and Exh. A-6-U5) was cleared and accepted by Equitable PCI Bank,
Makati Pacific Star Branch, based on the dorsal portion of the check.
The last three Special Savings Accounts (Special
Savings Account Nos. 3157-00077-1, 3157-00080-1, and 3157-00088-7) were closed
on September 4, 2000 and all the proceeds were credited to the regular savings
account, and then invested in the PCI Emerald Fund for Six Million Six Hundred
Thousand Pesos (P6,600,000.00). [Ibid, pp. 168, 206-207]
The current account balance is at Five Thousand Pesos
(P5,000.00) (Exh. A-6-W5) and that of the Savings Account is One
Hundred Ninety Seven Thousand Seven Hundred Thirty Six and Sixty Nine Centavos
(P197,736.69) (Exh. A-6-X5).
The last withdrawal from the savings account was made on October 5, 2000
for automatic transfer to the current account in the amount of Seventy Nine
Thousand Six Hundred Sixty Four and Eighty Centavos (P79,664.80). The last deposit was on October 4, 2000,
through a credit memorandum of Thirty Seven Thousand Twenty Nine Pesos and
Seventeen Centavos (P37,029.17) which represented the interest of the PCI
Emerald Fund. After October 5, 2000
there were no more counter transactions, only the entry of interest earned and
withholding tax. [Ibid, pp. 23-27]
ROSARIO
SALUDO BAUTISTA (Bautista) is the
Senior Branch Manager of the Equitable, PCI Bank, Diliman, Matalino
Branch. Bautista personally attended to
Yolanda Ricaforte who was a walk-in client of the branch on November 19,
1999. Ricaforte opened a savings account
and used her
The duly accomplished specimen signature card (Exh.
A-7-z) was presented to show the existence of the savings account. It was
personally accomplished by Mrs. Ricaforte in the presence of Bautista. The
initial deposit of Mrs. Ricaforte was Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (P500,000.00)
in cash. [TSN, May 29, 2000, pp. 93-96]
Ricaforte returned to the branch on November 22,
1999. She opened a combo account and
closed the savings account she opened on November 19, 1999. The combo account was Savings Account Number
0288-02037-0 and Current Account Number 0238-00853-0. As a new account, Bautista
required Mrs. Ricaforte to accomplish signature cards (Exh. A-7 and
A-7-a). When the combo account was
already opened, Ricaforte presented for deposit two (2) checks totaling Seventy
Million Pesos (P70,000,000.00). Each
check (Exh. A-7-B and A-7-C) was payable to cash for Thirty Five Million Pesos
(P35,000,000.00). The drawer was William
T. Gatchalian and the drawee bank was PCI Bank, main office in
Ricaforte told Bautista that the money came from the
proceeds of the sale of a prime property sold to Mr. Gatchalian. As
precautionary measure, the branch of Bautista checked with the drawee bank PCI
Makati and they learned that Gatchalian’s account was a good account.
There were additional deposits made to the
account. One deposit made on November
23, 1999 was a check (Exh. A-7-h) issued by Governor Luis Gov. Singson dated
November 22, 1999 for One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) payable to cash. The drawee bank was Metro Bank, Ayala. The second check deposit made was on
December 16, 1999 payable to cash with PNB, Naga Branch as drawee bank. The check (Exh. A-7-i) was dated December 9,
1999. The check was deposited and
subsequently cleared.
On December 2, 1999, Ricaforte deposited Three
Million Fifty Thousand Pesos (P3,050,000.00) in cash (Exh. A-7-d). The cash was in big bills, P1,000 and P500
denominations. Ricaforte explained to
Bautista that the amount came from other accounts in other banks because she
planned to transfer all her other accounts to Equitable, Diliman, Matalino Branch. Another cash deposit (Exh. A-7-f and Exh.
A-7-aa) was made on January 28, 2000 for One Million Pesos. [Ibid, pp. 100-130]
Ricaforte also opened a special saving account number
3288-00079-3 in the amount of Seventy Million Pesos (P70,000,000.00). The
initial deposit was taken from Ricaforte’s savings account (Exh. A-7-j). The
account was opened with passbook number 394979 (Exh. A-7-bb) and the specimen
signature card (Exh. A-7-cc). The
account has already been closed. [Ibid, pp. 132-135]
On February 24, 2000, Mrs. Ricaforte again
transferred Seven Million Pesos (P7,000,000) from her ordinary savings account
to a special savings account deposit (Exh. A-7-w) with Account Number
3288-00087-4. Ricaforte also
accomplished a specimen signature card (Exh. A-7-dd) for the Special Savings
Account.
On April 13, 2000 Mrs. Ricaforte applied for a Sevety
Seven Million Peso (P77,000,000) cashier’s check against her special savings
deposit account. She accomplished an
application form (Exh. A-7-l) for the transaction. Ricaforte had to accomplish a deed of
undertaking (Exh. A-7-n) because the cashier’s check was payable to cash. The cashier’s check (Exh. A-7-ee) was
deposited on April 25, 2000 at the Pacific Star Branch of Equitable PCI Bank in
Mrs. Ricaforte always dealt with Bautista as the Bank
Manager for her transactions. Bautista identified Ricaforte as the one wearing
red (Exh. A-6-vvvvv-1) when shown a group picture. Bautista also identified the
girl beside Mrs. Ricaforte as Mrs. Itchon, one of the witnesses in the
impeachment proceedings. Aside from the personal visits of Mrs. Ricaforte,
Bautista also called her on cell phone no. 0918-9021847 or home landline 9518854
whenever there was a maturity or an updating of interest. [Ibid, pp. 162-168]
At the time of Bautista’s testimony, the balance in
the account of Ricaforte was around Two Million Two Hundred Thousand Pesos
(P2,200,000.00). It is still earning
interest.
SHAKIRA
CASTRILLO YU (Yu) was the Manager of Equitable PCI Bank,
Pedro Gil-Robinson’s Branch since it opened on August 1999. Yu knew Yolanda T. Ricaforte as she was one
of their depositors. Ricaforte told Yu
that she was connected with Fil-East Travel and
Ricaforte opened the Regular Savings Account on
January 6, 2000. It was Ms. Evelyn
Ponce, the Cash Operations Officer who attended to her as Yu was not around. Yu
brought with her the specimen signature card (Exh. A-8-P) for Savings Account
No. 027602029-3 and the New Accounts Record (Exh. A-8-Q) which were filled out
by Ricaforte. [TSN, June 3, 2002, pp. 85-92]
The initial deposit (Exh. A-8-Q-3) of the Regular
Savings Account was Six Million Pesos (P6,000,000.00) in cash (Exh.
A-8-R). When witness asked Ricaforte
where the initial deposit came from, Ricaforte said it was proceeds of a sale
of a property. [Ibid, pp. 97-100]
Other deposits made to the Regular Savings Account
were the following: a check deposit amounting to Two Million Nine Hundred
Sixty-Five Thousand (P2,965,000) with Governor Luis Chavit Singson as drawer; a
cash deposit of One Million Five Hundred
Forty Thousand Pesos (P1,540,000) deposited on January 25, 2000 and a One
Million Three Hundred Forty Thousand Pesos (P1,340,000) check deposit (Exh.
A-8-D) with Governor Singson as drawer (Exh. A-8-D-1). [Ibid, pp. 101-112]
On January 31, 2000, Ricaforte told Yu that she
wanted to earn higher interest so witness advised her to participate in the
Reverse Repurchase. Ricaforte asked Yu to debit her Regular Savings Account for
about Eight Million Nine Hundred Thousand Pesos (P8,900,000.00) (Exh.
“A-8-P”). On February 29, 2000 Ricaforte
informed Yu that she did not want the Reverse Repurchase and she wanted a bank
product that earned a higher interest with passbook as documentation. The
Certificate of Participation without Recourse (Exh. A-8-F) was then paid on
February 29, 2000 in the amount of Eight Million Nine Hundred Forty Thousand
Seven Hundred Fifty-Two Pesos and Eighty Two Centavos (P8,940,752.82).
Yu then advised Ricaforte to open a Special Savings
Account. They took out her participation
in the Reverse Repurchase for P8,900,000.00 plus interest and Ricaforte asked
them to debit more or less One Million Fifty-One Thousand Pesos (P1,051,000.00)
from her Regular Savings Account because she wanted her Special Savings Account
to be in the amount of Ten Million Pesos (P10,000,000.00). The specimen signature card of the Special
Savings Account and the Credit Memo (Exh. A-8-G) under the account name Yolanda
Ricaforte for the Account No. 276-90238-5 dated 2/29/2000 were shown as
evidence of the existence of the account. The three signatures appearing in the
card belonged to Mrs. Yolanda Ricaforte signed in front of Yu.
Subsequently, Ricaforte withdrew her Ten Million
Pesos (P10,000,000.00) plus interest from the Special Savings Account and
transferred the amount to her Regular Savings Account. The Special Savings passbook of Mrs.
Ricaforte (Exh. A-8-H) contained the entry Out
of Return P10,019,555,55. [Ibid,
113-120]
On April 13, 2000, Ricaforte applied for a cashier’s
check in the amount of Eleven Million Pesos (P11,000,000) debited to her
Regular Savings Account. The application for Cashier’s check (Exh. A-8-I), the
receiving copy of the Cashier’s check, the Letter of Undertaking and Cashier’s
check (Exh. A-8-T) were all presented.
The Application for Cashier’s Check stated that the Cashier’s Check is
allowed to be payable to cash except that the bank will not be held responsible
for the loss thereof or a demand for a refund or replacement. It is no longer allowed starting around July
or August 2000.
Ricaforte instructed Yu to transfer Eight Hundred
Thousand Pesos (P800,000.00) from her Regular Savings Account on May 23, 2000
to her Special Savings Account to earn higher interest. A Special Savings Account Passbook (Exh.
A-8-L) was issued to Mrs. Ricaforte which credited the Eight Hundred Thousand
Pesos (P800,000.00) to the Special Savings Account. [Ibid, pp.120-127]
At present, the outstanding balance of the Special
Savings Account is more or less Six Hundred Thirty Four Thousand Pesos
(P634,000.00). The regular Savings
Account has an outstanding balance of more or less Sixty-Nine Thousand Eight
Hundred Pesos (P69,800.00).
After being shown a photograph, Yu identified Yolanda
Ricaforte as the person wearing maroon or red in the picture (Exh. A-6-Z5).
Yu was able to talk to Mrs. Ricaforte over the phone around six (6) times. She used the cell phone number indicated in
the records. [Ibid, pp. 128-132]
VERGEL
LEJARDE PABILLON (Pabillon) knew a
person by the name of Yolanda Ricaforte because Ricaforte opened regular
Savings Account No. 0193-61496-8 and Special Savings Account No. 02193-15050-3
with Equitable PCI Bank T.M. Kalaw Branch on February 8, 2000 while Pabillon
was still manager of the branch.
Ricaforte mentioned to Pabillon that she was
connected with a certain company under the name of Phil. East Travel and
Pabillon brought the Individual Account Record (Exh.
A-9-C) and the signature cards signed by Mrs. Ricaforte as evidence of the
Account. The initial deposit made were
in the form of a PNB Manager’s Check (Exh. A-9-A) in the amount of Ten Million
Seven Thousand Seven Hundred Seventy Seven Pesos and Seventy-Eight Centavos
(P10,007,777.78) and One Million Four Hundred Thousand Pesos (P1,400,000.00) in
cold cash. Eleven Million Pesos
(P11,000,000.00) of that amount was placed in the Special Savings Account and
Four Hundred Seven Thousand Seven Hundred Seventy Seven Pesos and Seventy Eight
Centavos (P407,777.78) was placed under the Regular Savings Account. [TSN, June
5, 2002, pp. 98-109]
On April 13, 2000, Mrs. Ricaforte went to the bank
and informed the witness that she needed Eleven Million Pesos (P11,000,000.00)
in the form of manager’s check, payable to cash, to be taken out from the
existing Special Savings Account No. 02193-6-15050-3. The manager’s check dated April 13, 2000
payable to cash was presented (Exh. A-9-B).
Ricaforte had to sign a Purchaser’s Undertaking bearing her name as
purchaser. (Exh. A-9-F) [Ibid, pp.
113-127]
Mrs. Ricaforte opened a third account, Special
Savings Accounts No. 02-193-15177-1, in the amount of Five Hundred Thousand
Pesos (P500,000.00). A debit memo (Exh.
A-9-G) showed the transfer of the P500,000 from the regular Savings Account
0193-64196-8 to the special savings account.
On August 31, 2000, Mrs. Ricaforte went to the bank
and requested for another Two Hundred Fifty Thousand Peso (P250,000.00)
manager’s check payable to her to be deducted from Special Savings Account No.
02193-15177-1. A bank document which
served as a registered copy of the issuance of the manager’s check was
presented. (Exh. A-9-H) [Ibid, pp. 128-129]
Pabillon identified Ricaforte from a group photograph
(Exh. A-6-B5) [Ibid, pp. 133-134]
The witness availed of the early retirement offered
by Equitable PCI. He testified in the
impeachment trial even if he was already supposed to go on early retirement
because he just wanted to tell the truth regarding what transpired to the
opening of the account of Mrs. Ricaforte. [TSN, June 10, 2002, pp. 54-56]
EDGARDO LIM ALCARAZ (Alcaraz) was the
branch manager of Equitable PCIBank, Scout Albano branch for almost three
years. He met Yolanda Ricaforte because
she was one of their clients. She opened
three accounts with the bank on March 2, 2000 and he was the one who personally
attended to her. These were savings account and current account under the
automatic transfer facility and a special savings account.
Alcaraz
testified on documents to show that Yolanda Ricaforte opened these three
accounts, such as the individual account record which showed information about
Ricaforte, her special instructions and the summary of the accounts that she
opened. The other documents pertained to
the specimen signature cards signed by Ricaforte for Checking Account No.
5732-01-975-7, Savings Account No. 5733-15154-3 and Special Savings Account No.
5733-00721-0. Ricaforte submitted her
local driver’s license and her
The
initial deposit in cash for the savings account opened by Ricaforte was One
Million Nine Hundred Ninety Five Thousand (P1,995,000.00). The initial deposit
for Checking Account 5732-01-975-7 was Five Thousand Pesos (P5,000.00). The initial deposit for Special Savings
Account No. 5733-0721-0 was Two Million Pesos (P2,000,000). Copies of the deposit slips (Exhs. A-10-G,
A-10-H, A-10-I) [Ibid. pp. 97-99]
On
April 12, 2000, Ricaforte pre-terminated the special savings account. This is shown by its passbook (Exh.
A-10-J). A credit memo (Exh. A-10-L)
showed that Ricaforte requested that the proceeds of the special savings
account be credited under the Savings Account No. 5733-15154-3.
On
the same day, Mrs. Ricaforte applied for a manager’s check in the amount of
Three Million Pesos (P3,000,000.00) payable to bearer. The application form for manager’s check (Exh.
A-10-C), the proof sheet copy of the manager’s check (Exh. A-10-K) and the copy
of the check were presented (Exh. A-10-M). [Ibid, pp.102-108]
As of the time of Alcaraz’ testimony, the regular
savings account still existed with an outstanding balance of One Hundred Three
Thousand Pesos (P103,000.00). The
checking account was still active with an outstanding balance of Five Thousand
Pesos (P5,000.00). With respect to the
checking account, Ricaforte issued a check in the amount of P500,000.00 on
March 12, 2000. Since the accounts are
automatic transfer accounts, the funds from the savings account were
automatically transferred to the checking account. [Ibid, pp. 100-101]
EMMA
She first met Ricaforte on March 15, 2000 when she
opened a special savings account with the branch. She walked into the bank, approached the
witness and told her that she wanted to open an account and that she was a valued
client of other branches of Equitable Savings Bank. The specimen signature card (Exh. A-11) and
deposit slip (Exh. A-11-A) were shown to prove the opening of the special
savings account. The initial deposit was
Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (P500,000.00) cash, in ten bundles of five hundred
(500) peso bills. Ricaforte said she was
a businesswoman but did not specify the kind of business she was engaged
in. With respect to the initial deposit
of Ricaforte, the account is still outstanding.
The original copy of the Equitable Special Savings Passbook No. 123727 (Exh.
A-11-I) shows the outstanding balance to be Five Hundred Ninety Three Thousand
Four Hundred Ninety Six Pesos and Thirty Two Centavos (P593,496.32) as of June
10, 2002. The difference in the amount
was the interest earned from the time it was opened. There was no movement of the fund except for
the interest. [TSN, June 10, 2002, pp. 162-169, June 17, 2002, p. 10]
Ricaforte
also opened Special Savings Account No. 077090498-6 (Exh. A-11-H and Exh.
A-11-D) amounting to Seven Million Pesos (P7,000,000.00). The initial deposit
was an MBTC (Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co.) Ayala Branch Check No. 1070. It was payable in cash and the drawer was
Governor Luis “Chavit” Singson. It was
cleared after three days. The account
was pre-terminated on April 14, 2000. The withdrawal slip (Exh. A-11-E) showed
that the amount withdrawn was Seven Million Nineteen Thousand Seven Hundred
Thirty Six Pesos and Eleven Centavos (P7,019,736.11). Ricaforte received the payment in the form of
a Cashier’s check (Exh. A-11-F) payable to cash in the amount of Seven Million
Pesos (P7,000,000.00) and cash in the amount of Nineteen Thousand Seven Hundred
Thirty Six Pesos and Eleven Centavos (P19,736.11). The dorsal portion of the Cashier’s check
showed that it was deposited in Equitable Banking Corporation, Makati Pacific
Star. On the other hand, the amount of Nineteen Thousand Seven Hundred Thirty
Six Pesos and Eleven Centavos (P19,736.11) cash was used to open regular
Savings Account No. 0770009375 (Exh. A-11-I). The latest bank statement (Exh.
A-11-J) showed that the account still existed but the balance was no longer
Nineteen Thousand Seven Hundred Thirty Six Pesos and Eleven Centavos (P19,736.11). [TSN, June 10, 2002, pp.
172-189]
Witness
was able to verify the phone number given by Mrs. Ricaforte because when she
called the number, Mrs. Ricaforte answered the phone. [TSN, June 17, 2002, pp.
11-13]
ANTONIO MARTIN SAGRITALO FORTUNO (Fortuno) was the Bank Operations Officer of Equitable PCI
Bank, Pacific Star Branch since January 28, 2002. The witness averred that he
handled the opening of accounts; supervised the investment section; the foreign
telegraphic transfer as well as the domestic telegraphic transfer and the
safekeeping of the records of deposits; and other transactions which transpired
in their branch.
Fortuno
brought with him documents relating to the deposit of six (6)
cashier’s/manager’s checks in the total amount of Two Hundred Million Pesos
(P200,000,000.00) to the Pacific Star Branch and the transfer of these funds
from cashier’s checks to the account of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation in the
100 Strata Branch of Equitable PCI Bank. [TSN dated September 27, 2002, p. 127]
He identified
an Acknowledgement Letter [Exh. I9, with sub markings; Exh. 16-a (Serapio)]
dated April 25, 2000 addressed to Atty. Edward Serapio from Beatriz L. Bagsit,
who was then Division Head of the Makati Area. The letter acknowledged receipt
of six (6) checks for deposit on a staggered basis and on various different
dates to the account of Erap Muslim Youth Foundation maintained at the Ortigas
Strata Branch. The checks were as
follows:
(1)
PCIBank Manager’s Check NO. 573-000035822 dated April 12,
2000 for P3 Million (Exh. A-10-m);
(2)
PCIBank Manager’s Check No. 019L-000061146 dated April 13,
2000 for P11 Million (Exh. A-9-b);
(3)
Equitable Bank Cashier’s Check No. 0226-00949 dated April
13, 2000 for P11 Million (Exh. A-8-t);
(4)
Equitable Bank Cashier’s Check No. 0238-000941 dated April
13, 2000 for P77 Million (Exh. A-7-ee);
(5)
Equitable Bank Cashier’s Check No.107-013064 dated April 13,
2000 for P91 Million; (Exh. A-6-r5)
(6)
Equitable Bank Cashier’s Check No.6720-00042 dated April 14,
2000 for P7 Million; (Exh. A-11-g)
Fortuno also
identified the passbook for Bearer Account No. 0279-04225-5 (Exh. J9,
with sub markings) which was opened on April 25, 2000. A bearer account is an
account wherein there is no name mentioned in the account. According to Fortuno, the six (6) manager’s
checks were the manager’s checks that were deposited on April 25, 2000 in the
bearer account for the total amount of Two Hundred Million (P200,000,000.00).
According the
witness, the instruction in the letter was to deposit the funds on a staggered
basis and they can do so if they first deposit all the checks simultaneously
for the three-day clearing.
On the basis
of debit memos, manager’s check applications, detailed report transaction and
deposit slips or receipts, the Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00) was
gradually withdrawn from the bearer account and transferred to the Erap Muslim
Youth Foundation from April 27, 2000 to May 11, 2000.
The six (6)
checks were deposited in Bearer Account No. 0279-04225-5 of which fourteen (14)
withdrawals in Manager’s Checks (Exh. K9 to X9, with sub
markings) were made in various amounts and these withdrawals were further
divided into twenty-eight (28) deposits into the Erap Muslim Youth
Foundation. Each withdrawal was divided
into two deposits, as shown by the Account Information Slips, Deposit Receipts
and Detailed Report for Transfers and Debit/Credit Memos (DRTM) (See Exhs. K9
to X9, with sub markings) brought by the witness. [Ibid, pp. 32-96]
The bearer
account was closed on November 14, 2000 as evidenced by the Fund Transfer Memo
(Exh. Z9), and contained the interest for Ninety Seven Thousand
Three Hundred Ninety Two Pesos (P97,392) which was transferred to the account
of the Foundation. [Ibid, pp. 97-98]
AIDA TUAZON
BASALISO (Basaliso) was the
operations officer of Equitable PCIBank, Ortigas-Strata 100 Branch since July
1997. She brought with her bank documents on the accounts of the Erap Muslim
Youth Foundation maintained at the Equitable PCIBank, Strata-Ortigas Branch
including the inter-branch deposits from the Equitable PCIBank, Pacific Star
Branch for the total amount of P200 million to the Account No. 0192-85835-6 in
the name of Erap Muslim Youth Foundation.
The
signature card for Savings Account No. 0192-85702-3 (Exh. A10) of
the Treasurer-in trust has the signature of Mr. George Go, the former Chairman
of the Board of the bank. The list of
Contribution (Exh. B10) also had the signature of the treasurer, Mr.
George Go. The two documents were given
to Basaliso by Catherine Mercado, someone who usually transacted business at
the branch.
Witness
also identified the Signature Cards of the Savings and Checking Accounts of the
Erap Muslim Youth Foundation. On the
signature cards (Exh. C10) pertaining to the Savings Account No.
0192-85835-6, the signatures of Mr. Raul De Guzman, Mr. George Go, Mr. Edward
Serapio and Mr. Danilo Reyes, Ms. Mila Reforma appear. Two signature cards were
needed for the same account because the corporation consisted of five (5)
signatories.
The signature cards (Exh. D10 and Exh. D10-1)
for current Account No. 0142-62890-2 showed the signatures of the same five
persons.
She identified the Secretary’s Certificate (Exh. E10)
showing that the Corporate Secretary was Edward S. Serapio, the Certificate of
Incorporation with SEC Registration No. 2000002526 (Exh. F10) and the
Articles of Incorporation (Exh. G10) and the by-laws (Exh. H10).
Witness also testified on a debit memo (Exh. I10)
dated April 20,2000 in Savings Account
No. 019285702-3 amounting to One Hundred Thousand Two Hundred One Pesos and Ten
Centavos (P100,201.10) and credited (Exh. I10-2) to 014262890-2 the amount
of Ten Thousand Pesos (P10,000.00) for the opening of the checking account of
the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation and a Credit Advice (Exh. I10-1) to
Savings Account No. 019285835-6 amounting to Ninety Thousand Two Hundred One
Pesos and Ten Centavos (P90,201.10) to open the savings account of the Erap
Muslim Youth Foundation.
Basaliso also testified on “no book cash deposits”
made to the savings account of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation. No book meant
that the deposit was made by the depositor without bringing his savings
passbook. DRTM (Detailed Report of Transfer Debit and Credit memos) (Exhs. J10
to R10) were presented to show the transactions. The following deposits were made: Ten
Thousand Pesos (P10,000.00) total deposit on April 27, 2000, Six Million Seven
Hundred Twenty Five Thousand Pesos (P6,725,000.00) and Eight Million Two
Hundred Seventy Five Thousand Pesos (P8,275,000.00) on April 28, 2000, Five
Million One Hundred Eight Thousand Pesos (P5,108,000.00) and Nine Million Eight
Hundred Ninety Two Thousand Pesos (P9,892,000.00) totaling Fifteen Million
Pesos (P15,000,000.00) on May 2, 2000, Three Million Ninety One Thousand Four
Hundred Fifty Pesos (P3,091,450.00) and Six Million Nine Hundred Eight Thousand
Five Hundred Fifty Pesos (P6,908,550.00) totaling Ten Million Pesos
(P10,000,000.00) on May 3, 2000, Six Million One Hundred Eighteen Thousand Two
Hundred Twenty Five Pesos (P6,118,225.00) and Eight Million Eight Hundred
Eighty One Thousand Seven Hundred Seventy Five Pesos (P8,881,775.00) totaling
Fifteen Million Pesos (P15,000,000.00) on May 4, 2000, Five Million Nine
Hundred Thirty Six Thousand Pesos (P5,936,000.00) and Nine Million Sixty Four
Thousand Pesos (P9,064,000.00) totaling Fifteen Million Pesos (P15,000,000.00)
on May 8, 2000, Seven Million Pesos (P7,000,000.00) and Eight Million Pesos
(P8,000,000.00) totaling Fifteen Million Pesos on May 9, 2000, Seven Million
Two Hundred Fifty Thousand Pesos (P7,250,000.00), Seven Million Three Hundred
Ninety Nine Thousand Eight Hundred Pesos (P7,399,800.00), Nine Million Three
Hundred Seventy Five Thousand Pesos (P9,375,000.00), Nine Million Four Hundred
Forty Nine Thousand Four Hundred Pesos (P9,449,400.00), Nine Million Six
Hundred Thousand Pesos (P9,600,000.00) and Eleven Million Nine Hundred Twenty
Five Thousand Eight Hundred Pesos (P11,925,800.00) totaling to Fifty Five
Million (P55,000,000.00) on May 10, 2000, Six Hundred Thirty Four Thousand
Pesos (P634,000.00), Two Million Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (P2,500,000.00),
Three Million Eight Hundred Thousand Pesos (P3,800,000.00), Five Million Two
Hundred Thousand Pesos (P5,200,000.00), Nine Million One Hundred Thirty Nine
Thousand Two Hundred Eighty Pesos (P9,139,280.00), Nine Million Five Hundred
Thousand Pesos (P9,500,000.00), Nine Million Eight Hundred Thirty Six Thousand
Five Hundred Pesos (P9,836,500.00) and Nine Million Eight Hundred Eighty Nine
Thousand Seven Hundred Twenty Pesos (P9,889,720.00) totaling about Fifty
Million Pesos (P50,000,000.00) on May 11, 2000.
There was also a credit memo made on November 14, 2000 amounting to
Ninety Seven Thousand Three Hundred Ninety Two Pesos and Fifty Centavos
(P97,392.50) (Exh. S10). Bank
statements pertaining to the periods April 1-28, 2000 up to December 2000,
except statements for July, August and October were presented.
At the time of Basaliso’s testimony, the current
account of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation with a balance of Eight Thousand
Six Hundred Pesos (P8,600.00) (Exh. T10) was dormant. The Savings
Account No. 0192-85835-6 was inactive with a balance of Two Hundred Seven
Million One Thousand Eight Hundred Eighty Three Pesos and Fifty Three Centavos
(P207,001,883.53) (Exh. U10).
Witness also testified that any two persons out of the five signatories of the Foundation were authorized to transact regarding the accounts. Based on record, the amount of Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00) was deposited into the account without a single centavo being lost. The passbook [See Exh. U10,36(Serapio)] had a balance of Two Hundred Seven Million One Thousand Eight Hundred Eighty Three Pesos and Fifty Three Centavos (P207,001,888.53) because it already earned interest. There were no withdrawals from the Savings and Current Account from the time they were opened. [TSN dated October 2, 2002 and October 7, 2002]
ATTY.
CECILIO ALEJANDRO VILLANUEVA (Villanueva)
is the assistant Corporate Secretary of PAGCOR.
Witness brought with him the Minutes No. 36 of PAGCOR’s Regular Board
Meeting dated September 5, 2000, under Agenda Item No. 002646 of the Best World
Gaming and Entertainment Corporation Cancellation of Quick Pick bingo and
conduct of PAGCOR’s Two Balls Bingo Games (Exh. S15). Witness brought with him pp. 28-30 with
referred to Item Agenda No. 002646. Villanueva’s testimony was offered
corroborate the testimony of Gov. Singson that the consultancy firm of Atong
Ang will receive 6% of the gross income from Bingo Two Balls.
On cross examination, witness testified that he has
no personal knowledge whether the Bingo 2 Balls was actually implemented. [TSN
dated December 2, 2002 and TSN dated December 4, 2002]
MARIANITO MANIGBAS DIMAANDAL (Dimaandal) was the Assistant Director of the Malacañang Records Department since 1993. Dimaandal identified the appointment papers of Atty. Serapio as Presidential Assistant for Political affairs, Office of the Presidential Adviser for Political Affairs (Exh. V10) and Mr. Orestes Ricaforte as Undersecretary, Department of Tourism (Exh. W10) and the assumption into office by Ms. Yolanda Ricaforte to the PCGG representing the San Miguel Campo Creo Group (Exh. X10).
Witness
also brought a Certification (Exh. Y10) issued by the Office of the
President that the phone numbers 736-8856 and 736-8858 were in fact the
telephones assigned to and connected to the presidential residence during the
incumbency of FPres. Estrada.
On December 16, 2002, Dimaandal was recalled to the witness stand. He
further presented and identified the Appointment of Edward S. Serapio as Member Ad Interim of
the Judicial and Bar Council representing the Private Sector dated July 1, 2000
(Exh. I17) issued by FPres. Estrada; a Memorandum to All Heads of
Office and Units signed by Former Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora (Exh. J17);
and a Memorandum to All Heads of Office and Units from the Office of the
President dated April 29, 1999 (Exh. K17 with submarkings) with the
subject title “Special Instructions to the Presidential Assistant for Political
Affairs” and with the contents read as follows: “Be informed that I have given
special instructions to Atty. Edward S. Serapio, Presidential Assistant I for
Political Affairs, to undertake, in addition to his regular duties and
responsibilities, the following functions: 1) provide prompt objective and
independent advice on any legal question, matter, or issue which may be of
special concern to the President; 2) update the President on recent
developments in law or jurisprudence on such subjects, areas, or issues which
the President may so specify; 3) study and review documents, deeds, contracts,
memoranda or other papers which the President may opt to refer to him for study
and review; 4) coordinate with various units of the Office of the President,
Departments, and other agencies and instrumentalities of the government on any
legal matter which the President may refer to him; and 5) perform other duties
and responsibilities as may be directed by the President. Atty. Serapio will be directly reporting to
the President on any of the foregoing matters.
For your information and guidance.”
On March 31, 2003, witness Dimaandal was again
recalled to the witness stand. He presented and identified copies of
Proclamation No. 145 dated July 17, 1999 (Exh. X19), Proclamation
No. 194 dated October 11, 1999 (Exh. Y19), Proclamation No. 202
dated October 21, 1999 (Exh. Z19), Proclamation No. 205 dated
October 25, 1999 (Exh. A20), Proclamation No. 225 dated January 30,
2000 (Exh. B20), Proclamation No. 234 dated January 28, 2000 (Exh. C20),
Proclamation No. 273 dated April 23, 2000 (Exh. D20), Proclamation
No. 355 (Exh. E20), Administrative Order Nos. 28, 29, 32, 50, 59,
69, 73, 87, 89 (Exhs. F20 – N20), Memorandum Order Nos.
82, 88, 89 (Exhs. O20-Q20) and memorandum Circular No. 45
(R20) . These documents were
signed by FPres. Estrada and his signatures were marked accordingly. [TSN dated
October 7, 2002; December 16, 2002; and March 31, 2003]
Serrano was called by the prosecution to corroborate
the testimony of prosecution witness Gov. Singson that he issued a check
payable to cash from funds of jueteng protection money to accused FPres.
Estrada and that the said accused, in turn, delivered the check to Mr. Paul
Bograd who subsequently deposited the check to his account at the Security Bank
Corporation; and to identify and authenticate the documents he was subpoenaed
to bring.
Serrano identified a microfilm copy of Metro Bank Check No. 0000917 for the amount of Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) that was deposited through Security Bank Corporation on February 2, 1999. The maker of this check was Gov. Singson and which check was deposited to Account No. 061-0-14636-7 whose account holder was Paul Gary Bograd as evidenced by a deposit slip of Security Bank Corporation (Exhs. N14; N14-1; N14-2; N14-3; O14; O14-1; O14-2; and O14-3).
Also presented was a statement of account showing that an amount of Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000) was credited on February 2, 1999 to the account of Paul Gary Bograd (Exhs. P14 and P14-1). Serrano also identified the specimen signature card of Paul Gary Bograd showing that the latter was a depositor in their bank and that he [Bograd] held the Account No. 061-0-14636-7 of Security Bank Corporation (Exhs, Q14; Q14-1; and Q14-2).
PATRICK DEE CHENG (Cheng), an employee of CITIBANK for 12 years, became the Branch Banking Head of CITIBANK on November 2001. [TSN dated October 7, 2002 and TSN dated October 9, 2002] As banking head, he had overall supervision and responsibility for all the branch banking operations of CITIBANK in all of its six (6) branches.
Cheng
presented and identified the following:
(1)
deposit slip (Exh. Z10, with sub markings) dated October 4, 1999 for
the account of Luisa P. Ejercito (“Mrs. Ejercito”) under Account No. 166820
covering the deposit of Metrobank Check No. 00138 (See Exh. M8 as
original and Exh. A11 as micro film copy) dated September 29, 1999
by Gov. Singson in the amount of Eight Million Pesos (P8,000,000) and another
check in the amount of Four Hundred Thousand Pesos (P400,000);
(2)
Account Opening Form (Exh. B11) for Account No. 166820 of Mrs.
Ejercito;
(3)
Hold-all-Mail Agreement (Exh. C11, with sub markings) dated March 9,
2000 of Mrs. Ejercito which designated Ms. Lucena Baby Ortaliza to be her
authorized representative;
(4)
deposit slip (Exh. D11, with sub markings) of William T. Gatchalian
dated August 20, 1999 with Account No. 8131201377 for Forty Six Million Three
Hundred Fifty Thousand Pesos (P46,350.000.00) which covered the deposit of
Metrobank Check No. 000132 dated August 21, 1999 of Gov. Singson in the amount
of P46,350,000.00;
(5)
certified copy of the microfilm of the Metrobank Ayala Center Branch Check NO.
000132 (See Exh. E11, with sub markings) dated August 21, 1999 drawn
by Gov. Singson, payable to William Gatchalian in the amount of P46,350,000;
(6)
Relationship Opening Form – Personal (Exh. F11, with sub markings)
of Mr. William T. Gatchalian; and
(7)
Signature Card (Exh. G11, with sub markings) of Mr. William T.
Gatchalian for a Peso Checking Account with Account No. 8131201377 opened on
March 13, 1996.
MELCHOR SUAREZ
He brought
with him a certification (Exh. H11) October 4, 2002 issued by Atty.
Melchor S. Latina, and subscribed before Atty. Gilbert Escolo that Globe
Cellular Phone No. 0917-5260217 was registered in the name of Jinggoy
Estrada. The certification was supported
with the Service Agreement for Cellular Mobile Phone Service (See Exh. H11-1,
with sub markings) executed by the applicant Jinggoy Estrada and the supporting
documents required in connection with the subscription of cell phone; specifically,
a photocopy of Jinggoy Estrada’s driver’s license (Exh. H11-2) and
statement of his Philippine National Bank Visa (Exh. H11-3) as proof
of billing. The cellular phone issued to
Jinggoy Estrada has already been cut-off since December 15, 2000 based on Globe
Telecom records (Exh. H11-4).
ATTY. OSWALDO
CHONG
In a letter dated December 22, 2000, the De Borja Santos Law Firm was requested by the Prosecution Panel of the House of Representatives to conduct an investigation regarding the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. (Exhibit A-12-a)
Atty.
Santos testified that the commissioned law firm of which he was a member
started conducting research and investigation on the alleged foundation on
December 28, 2000. They gathered available documents pertaining to the Muslim
Youth Foundation, Inc. from the Records Division of the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC). On January 5, 2001,
witness
The
witness then presented and identified a copy of the Report (Exh. A12)
of the investigating team on the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. He said that the original copy was submitted
to the Prosecution Panel of the House of Representatives and he attested as to
the truth of the contents of the report.
Atty. Santos mentioned that the said report stated that the law firm
occupying the supposed corporate office of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation,
Inc. “used to be the law firm of the Acting Corporate Secretary Atty. Edward S.
Serapio”.
Atty. Santos also identified the SEC documents that the investigating team had gathered which were previously produced and identified by prosecution witness Atty. David Jonathan Villegas Yap. These SEC documents were as follows: a Certificate of Corporate Filing / Information dated December 28, 2000 pertaining to the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc.; a Certificate of Incorporation of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. dated February 17, 2000 with SEC Reg. No. A20002526; a Covering Sheet of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc.; the Articles of Incorporation of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc.; a Certificate of Filing of the Amended By-Laws of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. dated April 3, 2000; another Covering Sheet of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc.; and the Amended By-Laws of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. (Exhs. T17, U17 V17, W17 with submarkings, X17, Y17 and Z17 with submarkings)
The witness testified on cross examination that the Erap Muslim Foundation, Inc. was duly organized and obtained a juridical personality in accordance to law. The Amended By-Laws of the subject corporation, which was approved by the SEC, allegedly provided that the members of the Board of Trustees were not entitled to receive allowances or honoraria in the performance of their duties. Atty. Santos was not, however, familiar to the Minutes of the Organizational Meeting of the Board of Trustees held on March 22, 2000 (Exh. 4-Serapio); the Community Tax Certificate (Exh. 5-Serapio) of the foundation; and the Mayor’s Permit (Exh. 6-Serapio) as well as the Business Permit (Exh. 9-Serapio) of the foundation. He qualified that he verified from the Office of the Bureau of Permit of Pasig City that the foundation had registered its Business License though he did not see the Mayor’s Permit of the foundation and mentioned the same in the report. Atty. Santos likewise admitted that he did not come across documents relating to the operations of the foundation but testified consistently on matters pertained the report. (Exhs. 7-Serapio, 8-Serapio, 10-Serapio to 15-Serapio, and 21-Serapio to 27-Serapio, inclusive of submarkings)
The signature card (Exh. B13) showed that
the account was opened on July 18, 1996.
The card contained Enriquez’s address as 95 8th Avenue,
Cubao, Quezon City and her description as Filipino, 5’5”, 34 years old, brown,
medium built and tiny mole on the right cheek.
Guerrero further testified that the biggest single
check deposit of Ms. Enriquez in the particular savings account was made on
August 4, 1998 for P40 Million. This was
shown through a bank statement of account (Exh. D13) brought by the
witness. The subject account was already
closed as shown by the December 27, 2000 bank statement. The address given in the statement had
changed to
DR. ROGELIO V. QUEVEDO (Dr. Quevedo) was, at the time of his testimony, the
Head of the Legal and Carrier Business of Smart Communications,
Incorporated. The prosecution offered
his testimony to corroborate the Itchon’s testimony regarding the Smart cellular
phone numbers used by Atty. Serapio and Ricaforte.
Dr. Quevedo
identified a Certification signed by him that Smart Cellular Phone Nos.
0918-9012071 and 0918-9021847 were registered in the names of Atty. Edward
Serapio and Fontain Bleu, Inc., respectively. (Exh. G12) [TSN dated
October 28, 2002, p. 74]
With
respect to Smart Cellular Phone No. 0918-9012071, witness identified the
application form accomplished by an Edward S. Serapio of the De Borja Medialdea
Bello Guevarra Serapio Law Office (Exh. H12), Certification
regarding mobile phone number, phone model, INEI and ICCID (Exh. I12),
Official Receipt No. 82116771 (Exh. J12), Sales Invoice No. A0161625
(Exh. K12), Account Summary dated March 6, 1999 (Exh. L12),
photocopy of Statement for Atty. Serapio’s Philippine National Bank Visa Card (Exh.
M12), photocopy of Atty. Serapio’s Citibank card (Exh. N12),
Customer Inquiry Menu (Exh. O12), Customer Address Inquiry (Exh. P12),
On Line Aging Information (Exh. Q12), Service Disconnection document
showing termination of the account upon request of the customer on December 20,
2000 (Exh. R12) and Certification Account Memo Inquiry (Exh. S12).
[Ibid., pp. 75-90]
With
respect to Smart Cellular Phone No. 0918-9021847, Dr. Quevedo presented and
identified the application form of Fontain Bleau, Inc. for two (2) cellular
phones for Yolanda Ricaforte and Maria Carmencita Itchon showing that the
number 0918-9021847 was issued to Itchon while the number 0918-9021849 was
issued to Ricaforte (Exh. T12), Customer Inquiry Menu (Exh. U12), Customer Address
Inquiry (Exh. V12), Account Maintenance Inquiry (Exh. W12),
On Line Aging Information (Exh. X12) and audio recording for the
voice mail of 0918-9021847 by a certain “Yolly” (portion of TSN marked as Exh.
Y12). [Ibid., pp. 91-115]
Dr. Quevedo further testified that the account for 0918-9021847 had already
been disconnected.
II. EVIDENCE FOR THE DEFENSE
The
following are the witnesses for the defense under paragraph (a):
FORMER
PRESIDENT JOSEPH EJERCITO ESTRADA (FPres.
Estrada) took the witness stand on
March 22, 2006, March 29, 2006, April 5, 2006, April 19, 2006, April 26, 2006,
May 24, 2006, May 31, 2006, June 7, 2006, June 14, 2006, June 21, 2006 and June
28, 2006. At the outset, FPres. Estrada denied that Gov. Singson was his close
friend because he had only one close friend, the late actor Fernando Poe, Jr.
Gov. Singson was just an ordinary friend and a political ally to him. He seldom
saw Gov. Singson when he was a Mayor of San Juan. Although he admitted that
they sometimes went out, as they had common friends.
FPres. Estrada stated that all allegations in
specification (a) of the Amended Information were lies, as he did not receive a
single centavo from any form of illegal gamling, even when he was still a mayor
and he never conspired with jueteng lords. As mayor of San Juan, his policy ws
to make
FPres. Estrada also cited national artist Nick
Joaquin’s book “Joseph Estrada and other Sketches” (Exh. 457), particularly the
article in the said book “Erap In a New Role” (Exh. 457-a), which narrated an
incident when he padlocked a gambling den when he was still mayor. (Exhs.457-a-1;
and 457-a-2) [TSN, April 5, 2006, pp.35-36]
FPres. Estrada asserted that his policy against
gambling had not changed, even when he was a senator, Vice President and
President. However, he realized when he was a mayor that jueteng which was a gambling
for the poor was illegal and its collectors were harassed while the casino for
the rich was legal. He delivered his first privilege speech at the senate on
November 25, 1987 (Exh. 458) where he advocated the legalization of jueteng in
order that the government through PAGCOR could earn Twelve Million Pesos (P 12,
000,000.00) everyday or Three Hundred Sixty Million Pesos (P 360, 000,000.00) a
month which could be used to provide essential services for the poor instead of
the enrichment of the police and illegal operators. Although when he was
Vice-President and appointed by President Fidel V. Ramos as Chairman of the
Presidential Anti-Crime Commission, jueteng was not part of his mandate but he
was to go against kidnapping, carnapping and illegal drugs. As President, he
appointed Justice Cecilia Munoz-Palma as Chairperson of the Philippine Charity
Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) and asked her to study how to legalize jueteng. She
retired only after less than two (2) months to take care of her sick husband. Later
it was assigned to her successor Rosario Lopez, who begged off as she was new
on the job. Chairperson Alice Reyes of PAGCOR took over and finished the study.
Chairperson
Reyes reported to former FPres. Estrada that the answer to jueteng was Bingo-2-Balls
and that if jueteng was to be legalized the government could earn no less than
Five Billon Pesos (P5,000,000,000.00). The study of jueteng showed that from
Regions I to V only the collectors, cabos and runners numbering one hundred
fifty thousand (150,000) benefit from jueteng whereas if jueteng is legalized,
the jueteng cobradors will became members of the SSS or GSIS, they would have
decent jobs, ceased to be harassed and victims of extortion. First Lady Loi
Ejercito woud have funds to provide dialysis machines for the poor. The
legalization of jueteng will minimize if not totally eradicate corruption among
police officials and local government officials (Ibid, pp.43-48) According to
Alice Reyes, the Presidential social funds could be augmented if jueteng was to
be legalized. However, FPres. Estrada told Reyes that instead the Mayors and
governors social fund should be created because these local officials are
besieged with requests for medicines, funerals, bills, bills for tuition fees etc.
[Ibid, pp.47-50]
FPres.
Estrada instructed Chairperson Reyes to implement right away the Bingo-2-Balls.
There was a dry-run in Bulacan and it was very successful. It earned Twenty
Four Million Pesos (P24, 000,000.00) in less than three (3) weeks in a few
towns in Bulacan. Unfortunately, the jueteng lords who were against it caused
trouble and it was stopped. There were allegations that FPres. Estrada was
receiving jueteng money. [Ibid, pp.53-54]
FPres.
Estrada denied that in August 1998 he had a meeting with Atong Ang at the
kitchen of his residence at
On
the delivery to him of jueteng money, FPres. Estrada denied Singson delivered
jueteng protection money to him at his house at
FPres.
Estrada denied any knowledge of the ledgers of jueteng money testified to by
Singson. He stated he had not seen said ledgers, he had nothing to do with them
and he could not understand them. He first saw the ledgers on television during
the impeachment trial. Acording to him, Singson only fabricated the ledgers;
like the documents pertaining to the excise tax. [Ibid., pp.24-35, 46, 49,
52-55]
FPres.
Estrada also called a lie the testimony of Singson that he instructed Singson
to pay Mr. Paul Bograd Five Million Pesos (P 5, 000,000.00) from the jueteng
money. He did not ask Singson to keep money from him, so he could not order
Singson to pay Paul Bograd and he did not owe the latter anything. [TSN, April
19, 2006, p.14] He explained that the check for P1,200,000.00 (Exh. N8)
which Singson allegedly gave as birthday gift for Laarni Enriquez was actually
intended for his son Jacob and his two siblings, specifically, P1,000,000.00 for
Jacob, the godson of Singson and P100, 000.00 each for Jacob’s two (2)
siblings, as Christmas gift. The check was dated December 22, 1999 whereas the
birthday of Laarni was September 22, 1999, Former President Estrada was
surprised at the big amount and he thought that Singson was trying to
ingratiate himself to him. [TSN, April 19, 2006, pp.15-16]
FPres.
Estrada also belied the claim of Singson that he advanced the Eight Million
Pesos (P8,000,000.00) interest from the Sixty-Two Million Pesos (P62, 000,000.00)
of jueteng money lent to Wlliam Gatchalian. He denied too that he ordered
Singson to lend the said amount of money to Gatchalian because he did not ask
Singson to keep any money for him. [Ibid., pp.23-25]
Regarding
Yolanda Ricaforte, former President Estrada admitted he knows Yolanda, who is
the wife of the Former Tourism Attache in
FPres.
Estrada however denied that Yolanda at any time was his employee. He seldom saw
Yolanda after the oath-taking of her husband. He did not approve her auditor
for jueteng as claimed by Singson. He had nothing to do with the money
deposited by Yolanda, as he did not have in his possession any bank documents.
[Ibid., pp.30-33]
Regarding
the testimony of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Former President Estrada
testified that even before he became mayor and when he was a mayor, he was
giving scholarships to poor deserving students, since he believed that
education would give them the opportunity to rise above poverty. His number one
program as mayor was to put up the first municipal high school, which as cited
by national artist Nick Joaquin in his book (Exhs. 457 and 457-A-3), was the
project closest to his heart as it will offer free education to the needy
young. He said that 60% of elementary graduates could not afford to go to high
school and thereby they could become a potential trouble group. This is the
root cause of criminality and he would rather spend money on free high school
than spend it to enlarge the municipal jail. [Ibid., pp.33-35]
Former
President Estrada also established the Movie Workers welfare Foundation
(MOWELFUND) when he was still an actor (Exh. 460). The MOWELFUND sent to the
FPres.
Estrada testified that he devoted his salaries as public official to scholarship
for the poor because without them, there would be no Erap. The poor patronized
his movies and supported him in his political career. He solicited donations
for his scholarship programs but donors wanted to remain anonymous. He put up
the ERAP Muslim Youth Foundation because it was his campaign promise for the
people of
Aside
from Dr. de Guzman, the other incorporators of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation
were Professor Danilo Reyes of the University of the Philippines (UP) who had a
Masteral and Doctorate Degree in Pulic Administration at UP, another UP
Professor, Mila Reforma, Mr. George Go, one of the owners PCI-Equitable Bank,
and Atty. Edward Serapio, a valedictorian of the Ateneo de Manila College of
Law and a bar topnotcher. The latter was introduced to him in 1999 by then
Secretary Lito Banayo of the Philippine Tourism Authority. He appointed Serapio
as Presidential Assistant on Political Affairs because he was impressed by his
bio-data. Serapio is not that close to him as he dealt with Serapio on an
official and professional level. He denied that Serapio established a
fictitious (“kalokohan”) corporation for him. He described Serapio as an
ex-seminarian, a scholar, a very respectable person, very conservative, very
professional, a family man and of unquestionable integrity [Ibid., pp.24-28].
Former President Estrada was automatically the Chairman Emeritus of the
foundations that he established. He was the number one fund-raiser but he is
not a signatory to the checks of the foundation. The seed money of the
foundation came from his salary. He sponsored an Erap Golf Tournament which
raised P27,000,000.00, some part of which went to MOWELFUND and most of it to
the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation. Funds were also raised from Valentines Ball
at Manila Hotel and from solicitations from his businessman friends and classmates.
[Ibid., p.29]
Regarding
the meeting allegedly attended by him, Singson, Ricaforte and Serapio where he
instructed Singson to give to the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, through
Serapio, jueteng money in the amount of Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,
000,000.00. former President Estrada claimed that no such meeting took place.
He only learned from Atty. Serapio that Singson gave P200,000,000.00 to the
foundation which he said came from an anonymous donor. He ordered Atty. Serapio
to return the money to Singson because his immediate reaction was that it was
jueteng money. The Former President Estrada emphatically stated: “I’m sure it’s
from jueteng.” [Ibid., p.34] He knew because Singson had been offering this to
him a long time ago. According to Serapio he did not know it was jueteng money
and that he received the money in good faith. When the former President told
Serapio to take all possible means to return the money, Serapio replied that he
would consult the Board of Trustees first. Former President Estrada did not
know what happened after that because rallies and the impeachment started.
(Ibid, pp.34-36). He learned later that the money was intact at the
Equiatble-PCI Bank and that it earned interest, per bank certification (Exh.
257-C) and passbook (Exh. 257, 257-A and 257-B). At the time of the testimony,
the money based on the aforesaid documents amounted to P 213, 000,000.00. (Exh.
257-B) [TSN, ibid, pp.41-45] Dr. Raul d Guzman informed him that the
scholarship was continuing but the foundation could not send scholars to the
In
support of his policy to go after illegal gambling, former President Estrada
cited the memorandum and verbal directives that he issued to the PNP to
implement this policy. In a memorandum dated August 3, 1998 (Exh. 132) of Acting
PNP Chief Roberto Lastimoso pertaining to the aforesaid directives, he reported
that he conducted 1,600 operations resulting in the arrest of 807 suspects,
confiscation of P320,039.70 in cash and jueteng paraphernalia, the filing of
253 cases in court with 13 cases still under investigation. The report gave the
statistics of illegal gambling for the semester 1998 and informed the former
President that he [Lastimoso] gave an ultimatum to all PRO Directors to pursue
the anti-illegal gambling campaign without end, until finally stopped and
eradicated. Another report of the PNP Acting chief stated in part:
“Dear President Estrada: This
pertains to our compliance with the presidential directive dated August 14,
1998, regarding the resurgence of illegal gambling operations in the country.
Please be informed that the directive was sent to all PNP Regional Directors to
identify, find, arrest and file charges appropriate in Court against
individuals who are using the name of President Estrada, or supposed connection
with his office to promote these illegal activities, and to come up with rigid
measures and tangible results and immediately stop all forms of illegal
gambling, particularly jueteng and masiao.” (Exh. 134) [TSN, April 26, 2006]
On
October 7, 2000, Former President Estrada issued a Memorandum to the Secretary
of Inetrior and Local Government, the Director General of PNP that pending
review of PAGCOR’s Bingo-Two-Ball which was in the meantime suspended, they
were directed to intensify anti-jueteng operations to prevent unscrupulous individuals
from taking advantage of the situation. (Exh. 468) He also issued another
memorandum to the incoming Director General Panfilo Lacson reiterating his
directive against illegal gambling and requiring periodic and timely reports on
all actions relative thereto. (Exh. 469) [TSN, ibid., pp.56-64]
On the testimony of Gov. Singson that he was used and
humiliated by the former President and ordered killed by the latter, the former
President testified that on the contrary, it was Singson who used his name
specifically in jueteng collections and Singson made it appear that he could
influence him, that Singson was close to him, and that Singson joined his state
visits even if he was not invited. Singson was accosted by the Traffic
Management Group (TMG) because he was illegally using sirens and blinkers, as
testified to by TMG’s General Paredes. [Ibid, pp.65-66]
According
to Former President Estrada, Singson leveled the serious accusations against
him because of his mounting problems. Singson had only two (2) sources of
income, the tobacco excise tax under R.A. No. 7171 and jueteng. Singson could
not liquidate his cash advance from the tobacco excise tax share of Ilocos
JOSE
“JINGGOY” ESTRADA was elected Vice
Mayor of San Juan in 1988 and Mayor of San Juan in 1992. [ TSN, November 17, 2004,
pp. 15-16.]
Mayor
Jinggoy stated that he first got to know Gov. Singson, whom he considered as an
acquaintance, during the presidential campaign of his father, FPres. Estrada,
in the 1998 elections. At that time,
Gov. Singson supported FPres. Estrada and hosted a lunch for FPres. Estrada’s
entourage when they campaigned in Ilocos
Mayor
Jinggoy denied the testimony of Gov. Singson that he was the collector for
jueteng protection money in the
Mayor
Jinggoy also denounced for being untrue the allegation that as collector of
jueteng protection money in Bulacan, he collected Three Million Pesos
(P3,000,000.00) monthly of which One Million Pesos (P1,000,000.00) was retained
by him and the other Two Million Pesos (P2,000,000.00) was sent to Gov.
Singson’s office or was picked up by Gov. Singson’s aides from witness’ office
in the municipal hall of San Juan or from witness’ residence. [Ibid., p. 22]
He
further added that he had never used a personalized check with his picture
printed on the check as testified to by Emma Lim who allegedly deposited such
check drawn against the United Overseas Bank of the
Witness
also denied the testimony of prosecution witnesses Vicente Amistad and Jamis
Singson who both claimed to have collected/received jueteng protection money
from the witness. With respect to the statements of Jamis Singson, Mayor
Jinggoy asserted they were untrue since he did not have a security aide named
Nestor. Further, the testimony of Jamie Singson that on other occasion, the
latter got protection money from witness’ residence at
As
regards the rest of the testimony of Gov. Singson, Mayor Jinggoy also stated
that following were totally untrue: that in his conversation with Gov. Singson,
witness confirmed that he received a part (or Fifteen Million Pesos) of the One
Hundred Thirty Million Pesos that came from the tobacco excise funds because
witness was never involved nor did he know anything about it; that before the
press conference held on October 9, 2000 at the Club Filipino, witness tried to
dissuade Singson from making the expose because at that time witness was in
Australia watching the Sydney Olympics. [Ibid., pp. 29-32] Witness, however,
admitted that three weeks before he left for Australia, Singson called him up
before meeting him at the Kamayan, EDSA where witness was having dinner with
his basketball team to ask if witness can convince his father or Atong Ang to
give Singson the franchise of Bingo 2 Ball and not to his (Singson) political
enemies, to which Mayor Jingoy replied that he will try to talk to Atong Ang. Witness also denied the allegation that he
called up Gov. Singson at midnight of October 8, 2000, on the eve of the press
conference where according to Gov. Singson, witness told Gov. Singson that
“baka naman isama mo pa ako dito, Governor”, because witness was then shooting
a movie with Judy Ann Santos. [Ibid., pp. 34-39, 102]
Bong Pineda was an acquaintance of Jinggoy Estrada.
He denied having known Orestes Rusty Ricaforte and Yolly Ricaforte, while he admitted
having known Bonito Singson whom he met once or twice. [Ibid., 65-68]
Jinggoy
Estrada testified that the
Mayor
Jinngoy knew Atong Ang personally, whose real name was Charlie and he first
come to know him even before the 1998 presidential elections. He testified that
he did not know Alma Alfaro, Eleuterio Tan, Victor Tan Uy, or a Jojo Uy, and a
yatch by the name of Escalera. [Ibid., 99-104]
ALICIA
PEREZ LLAMADO REYES (Reyes) was the Chairperson and Chief
Executive Officer of PAGCOR since January 2, 1987. She was appointed by Former President Corazon
C. Aquino, reappointed by Former President Fidel V. Ramos, and again
reappointed by Former President Joseph E. Estrada. [TSN, March 7, 2005]
The
witness testified that Atong Ang proposed to her the operation of Bingo Two
Balls sometime in the year of 2000. She
welcomed the idea since Atong Ang successfully handled the Jai-Alai operations
of PAGCOR. Witness Reyes then suggested
for a written proposal from Atong Ang.
In a Letter dated September 1, 2000 addressed to the Director of PAGCOR
Jose Rodriguez III (Exh. 286), Atong Ang proposed the feasibility of the Bingo
Two Balls. The proposal was duly
approved for negotiation by the Board of Directors of PAGCOR in a Memorandum
dated September 5, 2000 (Exh. 287 with submarkings). Witness Reyes added that the proposal had the
confirmation of FPres. Estrada who even told her to “study the proposal and if
it will displace Jueteng then he [was] all for it”. For the purpose of implementing the initial
operation of Bingo Two Balls, the officers of PAGCOR called a meeting in
Parañaque Casino and invited several personalities knowledgeable in number
gaming operations in the
Among
the conditions for the operation of Bingo Two Balls was the drawing of winning
numbers in public and that no payments will be made “under the table”. It was agreed that 23% of the total revenue
will be remitted to PAGCOR and 77% of the total revenue will inure to the
benefit of the operators. The Bingo Two
Balls nationwide operation was estimated to gain P50 to 65 Million of sales a
day. Atong Ang was supposed to be given
a management fee of 8% but was reduced to 7% and then to 5%. The management fee was finally recommended to
be reduced at 2% by the head of the Bingo Department of PAGCOR in a
Recommendation Letter dated November 30, 2000 (Exh. 290).
The
dry-run operation of Bingo Two Balls lasted for 20 days particularly in the
On
cross examination, witness Reyes clarified that there was no written agreement
for the dry-run operation of the Bingo Two Balls and that the conditions set
forth in the initial operation was not final.
She also stated that the P24 Million that was remitted to PAGCOR
represented the 23% share that was agreed upon and that part of this share was
remitted to the Social Fund of the Office of the President. The 77% share of the income was returned to
the operators.
On
re-direct examination, the witness testified that the Social Fund of the Office
of the President was created during the term of Former President Aquino. During her administration, this fund was
utilized mostly for building school houses which policy was also adopted during
the administration of Former Presidents Ramos and Estrada.
ATTY.
EMILIA SAMONTE
The witness testified that her department reviewed
and evaluated the Bingo Two Ball Project Proposal of Atong Ang to PAGCOR. The said project proposal was approved for an
initial operation and that the Officer-In Charge for the project was Jose
Rodriguez III while the Consultant of the project was the Prominent Marketing
Consultancy Group, Inc. of which Atong Ang was the General Manager. Atong Ang also served as the Marketing Agent
of PAGCOR for the project and, as such, he identified the operational areas and
the pre-qualified applicants. The Bingo
Two Ball Project was partially implemented from September 18, 2000 to October
7, 2000 in the provinces of Bataan, Bulacan, CAR, Cordillera Administrative
Region, Albay, Bicol, Cavite, Marinduque, Lucena, Batangas, Northern and
Southern Luzon, and in Visayas. PAGCOR
allegedly attained its financial goals and objectives in the organizational
stage of the project. Witness Padua
presented and identified PAGCOR’s Share Based on Reported Sales Quota (Exh.
288) prepared by the consultancy group of Atong Ang to corroborate the success
of the initial operation of the Bingo Two Balls Project.
Based on a Memorandum dated November 14, 2000 (Exh.
290) approved by the Board of Directors of PAGCOR, the 20-day operation of the
Bingo Two Ball Project aggregated a gross sale of P106,206,661.00 and that
P24,427,532.00 was collected by PAGCOR which represented its 23% share. The consultancy group of Atong Ang gained 2%
from the 23% share of PAGCOR. Though
there was no written agreement between PAGCOR and the consultancy group of
Atong Ang as regards the payment of the latter’s 2% share, the Board of
Directors of PAGCOR decided that the consultancy group of Atong Ang was
entitled to such share.
Witness
On cross examination, witness
On re-direct examination, witness
SENATOR
ALFREDO SIOJO LIM (Sen. Lim) was
appointed as the Secretary of the Department of Interior and Local Government
(DILG) on January 8, 2000. [TSN, March 14, 2005]
On October 7, 2000, Sen. Lim read in the newspaper
the alleged attempted ambush on the life of Gov. Singson and discussed the
issue with Congressman Luis “Baby” Asistio during their breakfast meeting at
the Manila Yacht Club. Thereafter, Sen.
Lim and Baby Asistio visited Gov. Singson at his residence in Blue Ridge,
Gov.
Singson allegedly said that Atong Ang and Ping Lacson were the persons
responsible for the attempted ambush on his life, and that both conspired to
have him killed because Gov. Singson was against the Bingo Two Balls gaming
proposal of Atong Ang and that there was an arrangement for the raising of
campaign funds for the presidential candidacy of Ping Lacson. Sen. Lim further related that Gov. Singson
also implicated FPres. Estrada on the alleged attempted ambush on his life on
the theory that Atong Ang and Ping Lacson will not have the courage to have him
killed without the approval of FPres. Estrada.
Gov. Singson also grumbled about the awarded franchises for the
operation of the Bingo Two Balls in Ilocos by Atong Ang to the political
opponents of Gov. Singson. Gov. Singson
also mentioned that FPres. Estrada did not help him sort out his problems with
the Commission on Audit (COA).
Sen.
Lim further testified that on the following day, October 8, 2000, he and
Congressman Baby Asistio went to the
The
witness also refuted the testimony of Gov. Singson that he conveyed the
impression to Gov. Singson that FPres. Estrada gave the signal to kill Atong
Ang. Witness Lim claimed that his thumbs
down gesture to Gov. Singson meant that FPres. Estrada would have Atong Ang
ordered investigated and not to have the latter killed.
On
cross examination, witness Lim testified that he had no personal knowledge as
to the purchase of shares from Bell Corporation by GSIS and SSS; as to the
matters regarding the Ilocos Sur Excise Taxes; and as to the Jueteng collection
ledger of Yolanda Ricaforte.
VIOLETA
SUAREZ DAMITAN (Damitan) was the
Executive Assistant of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation employed by Raul P. De
Guzman on January 1, 2004 (Exh. 278). [TSN, March 16, 2005] She was responsible, among others, for the
safekeeping of the records of the said corporation such as the Articles of
Incorporation and By-Laws, and the records of applicants to the scholarship
program of the foundation.
Damitan testified that the Erap Muslim Youth
Foundation provided scholarship education programs to the less privileged
Muslim youth Filipinos. The applications
and recommendations filed were reviewed by the Screening Committee and approved
by the Board of Trustees of the foundation.
Damitan presented and identified the credentials and
pertinent records of Sittie Shahani Laminero who was one of the applicants
granted a scholarship program by the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation (Exhs. 295,
296, 297 and submarkings). She likewise
presented and identified several documents enumerating and showing other
grantees of the said scholarship program, namely, Salvador Ongay Domona,
Sohayle Hadji Abdul Rachman, Janice Halim Negrosa, Roque Santos Morales, and
Ahmad Robert (Exhs. 279, 280, 298, 299 and submarkings). The witness further presented and identified
a Minutes of the Meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Erap Muslim Youth
Foundation on July 21, 2000 to show the appointment of the other employees of
the foundation and the accounts of the scholarship program (Exh. 274 and
submarkings).
SALVADOR
ONGAY DOMONA [TSN, March 16, 2005], JANICE HALIM NEGROSA [TSN, March 30,
2005], ROQUE SANTOS MORALES [TSN,
March 30, 2005] and H. SOLAYHE A.A. MARANGIT [TSN, March
28, 2007], all similarly testified
that they were granted scholarships by the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation. Witness Domona applied and was admitted for
the scholarship program on the year 2003; witness Negrosa applied and was
admitted to the said program on the year 2004; witness Morales applied and was
admitted to the same program on the year 2004 and witness Marangit applied and
was admitted to the same program in 2004.
These witnesses also presented and identified their respective
credentials and pertinent documentary evidence. (see also Exhs. 301, 302, 303, 304, 305, 306, 307, 308, 309, 310,
and submarkings)
ATTY.
CARINA JAVIER DEMAISIP (Demaisip) was appointed Assistant Corporate
Secretary of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. on January 1, 2004 (Exh.
277). She assisted the release of funds
and prepared the minutes of the meetings of the Board of Trustees of the
foundation. [TSN dated March 30, 2005 and TSN dated April 4, 2005]
Demaisip testified that Raul P. De Guzman solicited
her services for the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation sometime on July of 2003
which was after the incarceration of Atty. Edward S. Serapio, the Corporate
Secretary. The foundation was located at
the 4th Floor of VAG Building in Greenhills,
MARIA
Florendo testified that she did not know and had
never met on any occasion Emma Lim. The
witness said that she was shocked when she read from the newspaper that Emma Lim
allegedly gave her a black bag containing P5,000,000.00 at the Presidential
Residence. She refuted the statements
that Emma Lim gave during the Impeachment Trial on December 11, 2000 that the
latter went straight to her and handed a black bag which contained
P5,000,000.00; that Emma Lim was not required at the guardhouse of the
Presidential Residence to have her black bag examined in the X-Ray Machine;
that there were no furniture or sala sets at the right side of the entrance of
the Presidential Residence; that witness Florendo received the black bag and
placed it near a table and that she talked to Gov. Singson and told him that
“they already arrived”; and that Emma Lim went out running towards her vehicle
after giving the black bag to witness Florendo (Exh. 320-C and submarkings).
NORMAN DELOS
ATTY. JOSEPH QUION ORSOS (Orsos), P/SUPT. ARTURO LACSINA PAGLINAWAN
(Paglinawan), P/SUPT. RODOLFO SANTOS
AZURIN, JR. (Azurin), POLICE CHIEF
INSPECTOR NOEL BIACA VALLO (Vallo), P/SUPT.
ELISEO DECENA DE LA PAZ (Dela Paz), JONIRO
FORMILLEZA FRADEJAS (Fradejas) and RENATO
MENDOZA PAREDES (Paredes), all testified to matters related to the October
3, 2000 traffic incident involving Gov. Singson and the Traffic Management
Group (“TMG”).
Orsos, a Police Officer and the Chief of the Legal
Services of the TMG, presented and identified a Roster of Troops dated October
3, 2000; a Disposition of Personnel as of August 28, 2000 dated October 31,
2000; a Memorandum dated October 4, 2000 regarding the apprehended motor
vehicle of Gov. Singson; and another Memorandum dated October 4, 2000 (Exh.
360) regarding the traffic violation of the driver of Gov. Singson. He admitted
he had no personal knowledge of the incident. [TSN, July 13, 2005, Exhs. 358-61
with submarkings] Paredes, Director of the TMG, identified a Memorandum dated
October 4, 2000 signed by him and previously marked as Exh. 360. [TSN dated
August 17, 2003] Paglinawan, Chief of the General Assignment Section of the
Western Police District, testified that there were no records in the WPD that
Gov. Singson filed a case in relation to the October 3, 2000 incident. [TSN,
July 18, 2005] Azurin, Chief of the Special Operations Division of the TMG,
testified that, on October 3, 2000, he was called by Vallo for assistance in
some misunderstanding with Gov. Singson. He also testified to what happened
after they proceeded to the WPD headquarters in
DR. GEMMA BAULA
DAVID (David) had been the
dentist of FPres. Estrada since the latter was still a Senator. David testified
that she provided dental treatments to FPres. Estrada at the latter’s residence
in
MARICHU
ANDUEZA VILLANUEVA (Villanueva) was
a Journalist of the Philippine Star Newspaper and a member of the Malacanang
Press Group. She authored the article
entitled “Palace Backs Ping on
ATTY.
RICARDO VILLANUEVA PUNO, JR., a
practicing lawyer, testified that he joined the government as Press
Secretary and Presidential Spokesperson on or about March 16, 2000 and stayed
in that position until January 20, 2001. In such position, he would only speak
of information that he was authorized to disseminate to the public or the media
at that particular time. His position
gave him the privilege of being present at discussions on policies, which included
Presidential meetings. [TSN, October 3, 2005]
To the best of his recollection, the policy of the FPres.
Estrada then was always to fight illegal gambling. That has been the declared policy even during
the tenure of the witness as Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesperson. He
had a general recollection of this policy, but he had no specific recollection
of the times it was actually mentioned.
He could not recall specifically a press conference
held on June 16, 2000, although he saw the June 17, 2000 issue of the
Philippine Star attached to the subpoena [Exh. 415], but there was a time when
he held a series of briefings for media at 2:00 p.m., and it was probably
during one of those briefings that the points in the article were raised. The article referred to a drive by the then
Director General of the Philippine National Police against jueteng. The
question asked of the witness at the time was probably, whether FPres. Estrada
in fact prescribed jueteng reduction.
It was very clear that it was in fact the policy at that time, based on
their previous conversations. The article, however, referred to the drive
allegedly initiated by then PNP Director Panfilo Lacson. Up to the time that
the witness left in January 2001, he could not remember any reversal of that
policy. He would not know, however, if jueteng
continued despite the campaign against it, because his office as Press
Secretary was not monitoring the situation.
ATTY.
HILARIO PAUL HAVOC RAGUNJAN, JR. was
a commissioned Notary Public who notarized the Letter dated May 28, 2005 of
Rodolfo Q. Pineda (Exh. 331) addressed to the Chairman of the Committee on
Games and Amusements of the House of the House of Representatives, Hon. Mario
Z. Almario. Witness Ragunjan, Jr.
testified that he personally knew the affiant of the letter but had no personal
knowledge as to the contents of the said letter. [TSN, June 6, 2005]
MARIBETH ANG ESCOBAR, Officer-in-Charge of the
United Overseas Bank (UOB) San Juan Branch, testified on a Certification dated
June 28, 2002 addressed to Atty, Irene Jurado issued by Ms. Elma Gutierrez, who
was no longer connected with UOB. Witness had been the OIC of UOB San Juan
since Ms. Gutierrez’ resignation. (TSN, November 22, 2004, p. 48)
The said
Certification stated: “This is to certify that based on our records from 1999
up to the present, we have no current account listed under the name of the
client Mayor Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada.” She verified the facts stated in the
Certification by personally checking the records on file in their system and
there was no reading of an account under the name of Senator Jose “Jinggoy”
Estrada, upon receipt of the subpoena. (Ibid., p. 54)
Escobar also
testified that she was not aware and has not seen any check with photo of the
client on the face of the check. She has
never processed a customized check but has seen one with the logo of a company
like Sunlife. Witness stated that the Certification was issued based on the
letter dated June 28, 2002 of Atty. Irene D. Jurado to the Manager of UOB San
Juan. (Ibid., pp. 54-58)
Witness testified that although the
certification stated only that Jose Jinggoy Estrada had no current account, her
verification of their their records showed that there was no Jose Jinggoy
Estrada on the list of active accounts of UOB San Juan, as well as in the
dormant accounts. Similarly, the
ROSEMARIE J. SAN GREGORIO, Community Affairs Officer II of the
Municipal Government of San Juan, testified that she didn’t know personally a
lady by the name of Emma Lim, but has seen her testify before the
JOSEFINA
QUIAZON RAMOS worked as one of the
secretaries in the Office of the Mayor,
Ramos
described as untrue the testimony of Emma Lim that Emma Lim talked to Ramos and
was asked to sit in front of Ramos’ table in the Office of the Mayor on
February and March 2000. Witness stated
that Emma Lim never went to the Office of the Mayor in
SUSAN
MACALLA AVILES was the Social
Secretary of Ms. Guia Gomez and a resident of
NOEL ISRAEL
BUENDIA was previously a security guard assigned at the residence of Guia
Gomez at No. 1 Ibuna corner P. Guevarra Streets, San Juan, from February 26,
1998 up to 2002, and as such, was stationed at the gate along Ibuna St. from
6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and the one assigned in the front and in-charge of
asking visitors. During his assignment
at Guia Gomez’s residence, Buendia testified that he did not see Gov. Singson
go there. [TSN, December 1, 2004]
CONGRESSMAN
LUIS A. ASISTIO (Cong. Asistio) testified
that he was at San Francisco, California on July 24, 2000 as part of the
official Philippine Delegation accompanying then President Joseph E. Estrada in
his state visit to the United States of America, and that it was there that he
saw Gov. Singson, at the lobby of the Fairmont Hotel where they stayed, telling
him of the latter’s problem that FPres. Estrada did not want to see him. Cong. Asistio, together with Gov. Singson,
went to the room of FPres. Estrada, and Gov. Singson asked FPres. Estrada to
call the Chairman of the COA for the relief of the Auditor assigned in his
province to which FPres. Estrada replied that he might get into trouble as the
Chairman of the COA is a constitutional appointee and suggested that Gov.
Singson instead talk to then Executive Sectary Ronaldo Zamora to resolve his
problem.
Witness also testified that after returning from the U.S. and prior to the expose or press conference made by Gov. Singson in October 2000, he received a call from the latter asking him if they could meet it Manila Peninsula, and, at the same time, Gov. Singson told him of his problem and his grievances (sama ng loob) against FPres. Estrada, including placing his political opponents in positions of power in his province, such as, the relief of the Provincial Commander and conferring on his brother, Bonito, who is his mortal enemy, a position regarding jueteng.
Cong. Asistio clarified that in the many meetings he had with Gov. Singson during the period late August to September 2000, they mainly talked about the state of the Ilocos Sur provincial leadership and occasionally Gov. Singson’s suspicions regarding Atong Ang’s designs to corner bingo two balls and ease him out. According to Cong. Asistio, Gov. Singson is worried that his continued provincial leadership will be affected by the developments. Cong. Asistio also testified they never talked about jueteng, or receipt of jueteng monies or the alleged receipt of money from R.A. 7171 since according to him, he knew of these issues only during the Impeachment Trial and he thinks that these are mere figments of Gov. Singson’s imagination.
Cong. Asistio also testified that he, together with Mayor Lim, went to the house of Gov. Singson to persuade the latter not to push through with the press conference.
Cong. Asistio also testified that in his visits to Malacañang during the time of FPres. Estrada, at least three times a week, he never saw Atong Ang there because Atong Ang was banned by the FPres. Estrada from entering Malacañang. [TSN, October 11, 2004 and October 13, 2004]
ATTY. ESTELITA
D. CORDERO (Cordero) testified that she was a close friend Mrs.
Cordero testified that in October 2001, members of the Save Ilocos Sur Alliance (SISA) visited her in her office and requested her to go over several audit reports (1999 to 2000, SAO Special Report 1999) of the province and to find out if there is any basis for filing any action against responsible public officials of the province. [Ibid., p. 38] After going through the documents, witness Cordero, together with members of SISA and other concerned citizens, decided to file criminal complaints against Gov. Singson and other responsible officers of the province who did some anomalous transactions to the detriment of the province. [Ibid., pp. 44-45]
Witness thought that the testimony of Emma Lim in the impeachment trial were all lies because from the statement of Gov. Singson, he did not have anything to do with jueteng and the delivery of the money. Thus, witness claimed that all of these were fabricated statements on the part of Emma Lim. [TSN, November 10, 2004, pp. 26-28]
Witness
Cordero also testified that Gov. Singson was the jueteng lord in their province
and neighboring provinces, and all matters relating to jueteng, such as,
employment, people, operations were under the control of Gov. Singson. [Ibid.,
pp. 29-30]
BRIG. GEN. RODOLFO DOCTOR DIAZ, a retired military officer, was assigned as the
Commanding Officer of the Presidential escorts, one of the major units of the
Presidential Security Group, in 1998 when FPres. Estrada assumed office. He testified that he was familiar with the
private residence of FPres. Estrada in
The witness did not see Atong Ang either at
DANILO DELA
ROSA REYES was a Member of the Board
of Trustees of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. and the Acting Treasurer
of the said foundation. He was also an
Associate Professor at the National College of Public Administration and
Governance in the University of the Philippines (UP) Diliman and the Vice
President for Educational Services for the “Erap Para sa Mahirap” Foundation
Reyes testified that the “Erap Para sa Mahirap”
Foundation was duly established in 1988 and had 14,000 recipients of
scholarships as of the year 2000. Among
the Incorporators of the said foundation was FPres. Estrada. The “Erap Para sa Mahirap” Foundation,
however, encountered financial constraints so the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation,
Inc. came into existence.
Reyes related that Raul P. De Guzman, a
brother-in-law of FPres. Estrada, invited him to join in establishing a
foundation for the poor and deserving Muslim students in line with the vision
of FPres. Estrada of developing a new generation of Muslim leaders. He then identified the documents related to
the registration of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. (Exhs. 251 to 255,
262 to 271, inclusive of submarkings) with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(SEC). The Erap Muslim Youth Foundation,
Inc. was duly organized in accordance with law and had conducted its business
upon incorporation for bona fide purposes as stated in its Articles of
Incorporation (Exh. 252) and Amended By-Laws (Exh. 255). The original Members of the Board of Trustees
were: Prof. Mila Reformina, Dr. Raul P. De Guzman, Atty. Edward S. Serapio, Dr.
Danilo Reyes, and Mr. George L. Go, who later resigned.
The word ERAP affixed to the name “Muslim Youth
Foundation” was allegedly an acronym for “Education, Research, and Assistance
Program”. The funding of the said
foundation was provided by the Erap Golf Cup, which donated the amount of Ten
Million Pesos (P10,000,000.00); the contributions of the Board of Trustees in
the amount of P20,000.00 each; and a Two Hundred Million Peso (P200,000,000.00)
donation from a donor which, according to Serapio, would like to remain
anonymous. The amount of Ten Million One Hundred Thousand Pesos
(P10,100,000.00) was deposited with the UCPB and eventually transferred to
Metrobank while the Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00) was deposited
with Equitable PCI Bank. The Ten Million
Pesos (P10,000,000.00) was the source of the foundation’s operating expenses
and for minimal scholarship program during the time material in this case.
According to Reyes, the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation,
Inc. had (four (4) scholars for MA in Islamic Studies in the University of the
Reyes also testified as to the appointment papers of
the employer of the foundation, such as the Executive Assistant, the Assistant
Corporate Secretary and the Utility Messenger.
The office address of the foundation was transferred from
EUGENE
MACAMASBAD, a Police Senior
Inspector with the Philippine National Police, brought with him the
documents required in the subpoena addressed to Gen. Arturo Lomibao of the PNP
or his authorized representative. He
produced a certified true copy of a Memorandum Circular 2000-003, certified by
Celia Redison (Exh. 365). As to the
memorandum dated July 19, 2000 which was subpoenaed, the same could not be
located as shown by a certification dated 29 July 2005 issued by the Deputy
Chief of the PACER. (Exh. 380) [TSN, August 1, 2005, pp. 60-69] The witness
came to Court and produced the above documents only upon verbal instruction
from his officers. He was not the
records custodian and he did not have any knowledge about records being
maintained by their office. [Ibid., pp. 70-72, id.]
SEN. EDGARDO ANGARA, a lawyer and a senator when he testified in Court,
knew Gov. Singson. They were compadres, being godfathers at the wedding
of Singson’s niece. In September 2000,
Gov. Singson made an unexpected visit at Senator Angara’s farm to request that
the witness talk to President Estrada about the 2-balls game. Gov. Singson told the witness that the
franchise for the said game in Ilocos Sur was given to his political opponent
and he was losing face with his supporters.
Gov. Singson wanted the franchise to go to him or if it cannot be
granted, that the game of 2-balls not be allowed altogether in Ilocos. The witness replied that he would go down to
Sen.
Angara remembered Gov. Singson saying that the franchise was given to Eric
Singson. Gov. Singson even mentioned a
list of of jueteng payoffs and that one of the beneficiaries was the
President. When Sen. Angara mentioned to
FPres. Estrada Gov. Singson’s request regarding 2-balls and statements
regarding jueteng, the President denied that he was a recipient of any payoff,
saying he had nothing to do with it [2-balls] but that it was Atong Ang’s
jurisdiction [Ibid., pp.16 and 24]
After Sen. Angara relayed the answer of the
President, Gov. Singson asked the witness to talk to Atong Ang and the witness
said he will try. When the witness was able to talk to Atong Ang and repeated
Gov. Singson’s request, Atong Ang replied he will study it or that he will have
to consult PAGCOR. The witness denied having told Gov. Singson “Grabe ‘to.
Huwag kang lumabas at akong bahala kay Presidente dahil baka pati kaming mga Cabinet
members maaapektuhan nito.” [Ibid., pp. 17-18, 24-25] Witness saw the
list of payoffs shown by Singson, but he did not read it. [Ibid., pp. 30, 43]
FINDINGS
OF FACT
Re: Sub-paragraph (a) of the Amended
Information
With
respect to the alleged acts of receiving or collection of sums of money from
illegal gambling, commonly known as “jueteng”, in the form of share or
percentage, the Court finds credible material portions of Gov. Chavit Singson’s
testimony insofar as they are corroborated by independent and competent
evidence.
The
Court concedes that Gov. Chavit Singson did not have the purest of motives in
exposing the jueteng collections which he testified were done for the benefit
of FPres. Estrada. Undoubtedly and by
his own admission, he resented not being given the franchise for the Bingo Two
Balls, the government sanctioned numbers game, in his home province of Ilocos
Sur. He feared the demise of his
political career as the said franchise was given to his political opponents,
Eric Singson and his brother Bonito Singson, to the embarrassment of the mayors
who were affiliated to him. Gov. Chavit
Singson was disappointed to say the least that Mayor Jinggoy Estrada, JV
Ejercito, the other son of FPres. Estrada, Secretary Edgardo Angara, Secretary
Alfredo Lim, friends like Luis Asistio and Mark Jimenez, whom Gov. Chavit
Singson approached to intercede to FPres. Estrada to help him secure the
franchise, were unsuccessful. Gov.
Chavit Singson was also displeased that FPres. Estrada would not use the Office
of the Presidency to help him with his trouble with the Commission on Audit
which was demanding his liquidation of the Two Hundred Million Pesos
(P200,000,000.00) share of Ilocos Sur in the excise taxes collected under RA
No. 7171. The Court will not cite the
alleged attempt on the life of Gov. Chavit Singson in the evening of October 3,
2000 considering the contradictory evidence on this matter consisting of the
testimony of the enforcement officers on the incident.
The
acts of collection of jueteng protection money for FPres. Estrada from various
provinces nationwide per month as well as the payments to him and to various
persons from such sums of money with his approval or acquiescence were
methodically detailed in two sets of ledgers: the first set covering the period
beginning November 1998 to July 1999 (Exh. W7 to E8), and
the second set for the period starting August 1999 to August 2000 (Exh. A-4 to
A-4-l). The first set of ledgers were
personally prepared by Gov. Chavit Singson, aided by Emma Lim and Carmencita
Itchon, while the second set of ledgers were prepared by Yolanda Ricaforte,
under the supervision of Gov. Chavit Singson and also with the help of Lim and
Itchon. Insofar as the collection of
jueteng money is concerned, Emma Lim and Carmencita Itchon, by their own
admission performed similar roles as Yolanda Ricaforte except that the latter
received double the amount of the monthly salary of Lim and Itchon by virtue of
her “supervisory” status.
The
accused would have this Court dismiss the ledgers as hearsay and/or mere
fabrications. However, there are
circumstances which lend credibility to the said ledgers. The first set of ledgers (Exh. W7
to E8) was faxed by Ricaforte to Singson just before Gov. Chavit
Singson made his expose while the second set of ledgers (Exh. A-4 to A-4-l) was
in the possession of Ricaforte, which she produced during the Senate
Impeachment proceedings, as testified to by Atty. David Jonathan Yap, the
Senate Legal Counsel.
Yolanda
Ricaforte was closely associated to FPres. Estrada, being the wife of Orestes
Ricaforte, who was appointed by FPres. Estrada as Undersecretary of
Tourism. Ricaforte opened several
accounts in the different branches of Equitable PCI Bank with unusually huge
deposits and investments in multiple of millions of pesos during the period
covered by the second set of ledgers.
Per
testimony of
According
to Rosario S. Bautista, in Diliman-Matalino Branch, Ricaforte opened on
November 19, 1999 a combo account: Savings Account No. 0288-02037-0 and Current
Account No. 0238-00853-0 with an initial deposit of P70,000,000.00 covered by
two (2) PCI Bank Checks payable to cash each in the amount of P35,000,000.00,
drawn by William T. Gatchalian.
Additional deposits were: a check (Exh. A-7-h) issued by Gov. Chavit
Singson on November 22, 1999 for P1,000,000.00; another check dated December 9,
1999 with PNB Naga as drawee bank (Exh. A-7-j); cash deposit of P3,050,000.00
(Exh. A-7-d) on December 2, 1999; and cash deposit of P1,000,000.00 on January
28, 2000.
In
the Pedro Gil-Robinsons Branch, according to Shakira C. Yu, Ricaforte opened on
January 6, 2000, a Regular Savings Account with an initial deposit of
P6,000,000.00. Other deposits consisted
of: (1) check drawn by Gov. Chavit Singson for P2,965,000.00; (2) cash deposit
of P1,540,000.00 on January 25, 2000; and check drawn by Gov. Chavit Singson in
the amount of P1,340,000.00.
In
the T.M. Kalaw Branch, Pabillon testified that Ricaforte opened Regular Savings
Account No. 0193-61496-8 and Special Savings Account No. 02193-15050-3 on
February 8, 2000, with the initial deposits in PNB Managers Check (Exh. A-9-A)
in the amount of P10,007,777.78 and cash of P1,400,000.00.
In
the Scout Albano Branch, Alcaraz testified that Ricaforte opened on March 2,
2000 three accounts with initial deposits as follows: Savings Account No.
5733-15154-3, P1,995,000.00; Special Savings Account No. 5733-0721-0,
P2,000,000.00; and Checking Account No. 5732-01-975-7, P5,000.00.
In
Isidora Hills Branch, Gonzales testified that Ricaforte opened on March 15,
2000, among others, Special Savings Account No. 077090498-6 with the initial
deposit of P7,000,000.00 in the form of Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. Check
drawn by Gov. Chavit Singson payable to cash.
Bank
officials, such as Salvador R. Serrano, Patrick Dee Cheng, and Carolina S.
Guerrero, testified to the existence of checks paid by Chavit Singson which
landed in the accounts of persons associated with FPres. Estrada: (1) Metrobank
Check No. 0000917 of Gov. Chavit Singson for P5,000,000.00 which was deposited
on February 2, 1999 in Account No. 061-0-14636-7 of Paul Gary Bogard at
Security Bank; (2) Metrobank Check No. 00138 drawn by Chavit Singson on
September 29, 1999 in the amount of P8,000,000.00 deposited in the account of
Mrs. Luisa P. Ejercito; (3) Metrobank Ayala Center Check No. 000132 drawn by
Gov. Chavit Singson payable to William Gatchalian in the amount of
P46,350,000.00; (4) Metrobank Check No. 001547 issued by Gov. Chavit Singson in
the amount of P1,200,000.00 which was deposited in the Account No. 0180409000-3
of Laarni Enriquez on December 23, 1999.
The Erap Muslim Youth Foundation
The
paper trail of the P200,000,000.00 deposited for the Erap Muslim Youth
Foundation, Inc. incontrovertibly established that the said sum of money came
from jueteng collections through the cashier’s / managers checks purchased by
Ricaforte using the deposits in the accounts that she opened in the different
branches of Equitable PCI Bank described above, as follows: Cashier’s Check for
P91,000,000.00, Scout Tobias-Timog Branch, April 13, 2000 (Exh. A-6-S);
Cashier’s Check for P77,000,000.00, Diliman-Matalino Branch, April 13, 2000
(Exh. A-7-ee); Cashier’s Check for P11,000,000.00, Pedro Gil-Robinsons Branch,
April 13, 2000 (Exh. A-9-B); Manager’s Check for P3,000,000.00, Scout Albano
Branch, April 12, 2000 (Exh. A-10-K); and Cashier’s Check for P7,000,000.00,
Isidora Hills Branch, April 14, 2000.
Antonio
Fortuno, Bank Operations Officer of Equitable PCI Bank Pacific Star Branch,
testified that the aforementioned six (6) checks were deposited in Bearer
Account No. 0279-04225-5. From the said
bearer account, fourteen (14) withdrawals in Manager’s Checks (Exh. K9
to X9 with submarkings) were made in various amounts. Each withdrawal was divided into two deposits
or a total of twenty eight (28) deposits of various amounts into the Erap
Muslim Youth Foundation, as shown by the Account Information Slips, Deposit
Receipts, and Detailed Report for Transfers and Debit / Credit Memos (DRTM)
(Exh. K9 to X9 with submarkings).
Fortuno
identified the Acknowledgement Letter (Exh. I9) dated April 25, 2000
addressed to Atty. Serapio from Beatriz Bagsit, Division Head of Makati Area,
acknowledging receipt of the said six (6) checks for deposit on staggered basis
and on different dates to the account of Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. at
Ortigas-Strata Branch.
Aida
T. Basaliso corroborated the testimony of bank officer Fortuno as to the
inter-branch deposits at Equitable PCI Bank Strata Ortigas Branch in Savings
Account No. 0192-85835-6 of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation, Inc. from the
Pacific Star Branch of the same bank in the amount of P200,000,000.00 on
staggered basis.
The
slew of bank documents, involving mind-boggling amounts of money and authenticated
by competent and credible bank officers, convinces the Court that collection of
jueteng money for FPres. Estrada indeed took place and the entries in the
ledger were not manufactured by Gov. Chavit Singson.
Payments
or disbursements of the jueteng protection money to persons related to or
closely associated with FPres. Estrada belie his denial that the funds
accounted for in the ledgers belong to him.
Indeed, the Court cannot see why Gov. Chavit Singson would make such
large and substantial payments in the form of checks drawn from his Metrobank
account, to personalities such as William Gatchalian, Laarni Enriquez, Loi
Estrada, or other intimate associates of FPres. Estrada unless the money
belonged to FPres. Estrada and the funds were being disbursed according to his
instructions. The evidence does not show
why Gov. Chavit Singson would choose Ricaforte to take over the supervision of
the jueteng collection and let her deposit millions of pesos into Ricaforte’s
accounts in the different branches of the Equitable PCI Bank when Ricaforte had
no prior association nor relation to Gov. Singson and that the latter had his
own trusted associates. As admitted by
the accused, it was FPres. Estrada who had a long standing and close
relationship with Ricaforte and her husband.
This fact would explain Ricaforte’s vital participation in the
preparation of the second set of ledgers.
The said ledgers were prepared and later produced before the Senate by
Ricaforte and not by Gov. Singson.
The
first set of ledgers show that P72,500,000.00 of jueteng money were handed to
FPres. Estrada, alias “Asiong Salonga” from November 1998 to July 1999. Based on the second set of ledgers, the total
amount of jueteng money that FPres. Estrada received was P112,800,000.00 from
August 1999 to August 2000. For the
entire duration or period covered by the 2 sets of ledgers of the total amount
of P185,300,000.00. was handed by Gov. Chavit Singson to FPres. Estrada
bi-monthly. The balance, after these
amounts were given to FPres. Estrada and the deduction of expenses, were
deposited by Ricaforte in her bank accounts.
Based on the two (2) sets of ledgers the total jueteng collections for
FPres. Estrada from November 1998 to August 2000 amounted to P545,291,000.00. The P200,000,000.00 of these sums of money
found their way into the account of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation.
With
respect to Jinggoy Estrada, according to Gov. Singson, he was the “Jing” listed
as an expense in the ledger for P1,000,000.00.
It was Gov. Singson’s testimony that FPres. Estrada (after discovering
that entry) forbade Gov. Chavit Singson from giving any further share in the
jueteng protection money to Jinggoy Estrada and that it will be up to FPres.
Estrada to give Jinggoy Estrada a share.
For this reason, Gov. Chavit Singson and Jinggoy Estrada hid the fact
that Jinggoy Estrada was the collector for the
The prosecution did not also rebut the bank
certification presented by the defense that Jinggoy Estrada did not have an
account with the United Overseas Bank.
The certification disproved the testimony of Emma Lim that the deposit
slip in the amount of P1,000,000.00 said to be part of jueteng money was turned
over to her by Jinggoy Estrada in the form of a personalized check with his
photograph, from his account at the United Overseas Bank. The gaps in the prosecution’s evidence as to
Jinggoy Estrada create uncertainty in the mind of the Court as to the
participation of Jinggoy Estrada in the collection and receipt of jueteng
money. This Court had already brushed
aside prosecution’s reliance on the telephone calls and billing statements for
such calls between Ricaforte and Jinggoy Estrada to prove that he was a jueteng
collector for Bulacan, for being highly speculative. The Court’s ruling remains firm to this day.
With respect to Serapio, neither Gov. Chavit
Singson’s testimony nor the ledger entries proved that Serapio was involved in
any way in the collection or disbursement of jueteng protection money. Certainly, Serapio’s involvement appears to
have begun and was limited to the funds of the Erap Muslim Youth
Foundation. Serapio is being charged
with “laundering” or concealing a portion of the jueteng protection money in
the amount of approximately P200,000,000.00 which was deposited in the account
of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation.
To this Court’s mind, while the P200,000,000.00 was
clearly illegally amassed wealth, the evidence on record is insufficient to
prove beyond reasonable doubt that Serapio was aware that the questioned funds
were in fact amassed from jueteng protection money collections and that the
fact of the unusually large amount of the deposits into the foundation’s
account was with criminal intent on the part of Serapio to “launder” or conceal
the illegal nature of the funds to serve the purpose of the acquisition or
amassing of ill-gotten wealth by FPres. Estrada. The only evidence presented on this point is
the uncorroborated testimony of Gov. Chavit Singson that Serapio was present
during the meeting wherein FPres. Estrada instructed the transfer of the amount
of P200,000,000.00 to the foundation.
The Court has reservations as to the credibility of Gov. Singson’s
assertion in this regard because Gov. Singson failed to mention Serapio’s
presence on that occasion during his testimony at the Senate Impeachment
trial. Neither can the Court consider
from the single fact alone that he arranged the staggered deposit of the said
sum of money to the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation that he had a criminal intent
to conceal ill-gotten wealth in furtherance of the accumulation of such wealth
by the principal accused. More so, this
Court is not prepared to conclusively rule that the Erap Muslim Youth
Foundation is not a legitimate foundation or that it was set up purely to hide
his illegally amassed wealth. The
incorporation papers and business permits of the Foundation are authentic and
regular. The personalities behind the
said foundation appear to be well-respected academicians. Fortunately or unfortunately, the public
revelation of the nature of the P200,000,000.00 as part of jueteng protection
money collected for FPres. Estrada came too soon after the organization of the
Foundation. The Court is not in a
position to ascertain with moral certainty if this controversy preempted any
legitimate charitable activities it could have undertaken soon after its
incorporation as it was explained by defense witnesses or whether it was as the
prosecution asserted a money laundering entity.
Premises considered, it is difficult to presume any criminal intent on
the part of Serapio to conceal or launder jueteng protection money in order to
contribute to the amassing and accumulation of ill-gotten wealth by FPres.
Estrada in connection with the transfer of the P200,000,000.00 to the Erap
Muslim Youth Foundation, notwithstanding that the evidence on record
demonstrate indisputably that the said sum of money form part of ill-gotten
wealth obtained though the predicate acts charged in sub-paragraph (a) of the
Amended Information.
RE: SUB-PARAGRAPH B OF THE
AMENDED INFORMATION
_____________________________
(b) by
DIVERTING, RECEIVING, misappropriating,
converting OR misusing DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, for HIS OR THEIR PERSONAL gain and
benefit, public funds in the amount of ONE HUNDRED THIRTY MILLION PESOS
[P130,000,000.00], more or less, representing a portion of the TWO HUNDRED
MILLION PESOS [P200,000,000.00] tobacco excise tax share allocated for the
Province of Ilocos Sur under R.A. No. 7171, BY HIMSELF AND/OR in CONNIVANCE
with co-accused Charlie ‘Atong’ Ang, Alma Alfaro, JOHN DOE a.k.a. Eleuterio
Tan OR Eleuterio Ramos Tan or Mr. Uy, and Jane Doe a.k.a. Delia Rajas, AND
OTHER JOHN DOES AND JANE DOES;
I. EVIDENCE FOR THE PROSECUTION
GOVERNOR
LUIS “CHAVIT” CRISOLOGO SINGSON also
testified to prove the second charge in the amended Information involving the
diversion of excise taxes under Republic Act (RA) No. 7171. [TSN dated
According to Gov. Singson, Jinggoy Estrada and Atong
Ang kept on following up the release of the money from DBM. A notice of funding check issued (Fund 103
dated August 25, 1998) (Exh. R8) was received by Gov. Singson. Gov. Singson immediately informed Jinggoy Estrada
and Atong Ang. The latter told Gov. Singson
that the President needed One Hundred Thirty Million Pesos (P130,000,000.00). Gov. Singson was surprised because their
agreement was only ten percent (10%). Atong told him there will be billions of pesos,
so they should be the first one to deliver to FPres. Estrada and thus be the
strongest and more influential (to the Former President). Gov. Singson then caused the preparation of a
Provincial Board resolution appropriating the sum of Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00).
The Board approved the appropriation of
One Hundred Seventy Million Pesos (P170 Million) for the flue curing barn and
Thirty Million Pesos (P30,000,000.00) for infrastructure. Atong Ang gave Gov. Singson three (3) names to
whom the money would be sent, which they did. Landbank Vigan transferred One Hundred Thirty
Million Pesos (P130,000,000.00) to Landbank Mandaluyong which credited the
accounts of the three (3) persons named by Atong Ang as follows: Account No.
0561043-38, Alma Alfaro, August 27, 1998, P40,000,000.00; Account No.
0561-0445-97, Delia Rojas, August 28, 1998, P50,000,000.00; and Account No.
0561-0446-00, Eleuterio Tan, August 28, 1998, P40,000,000.00. The total amounted to P130,000,000.00.
The above data were contained in a certification of
Landbank Branch Head Ma. Elizabeth Balagot (Exh. S8). [Ibid, pp.
96-108] Gov. Singson did not personally
know Delia Rajas, Alma Alfaro or Eleuterio Tan. In a photograph (Exh. V8), Gov. Singson
identified Jojo Uy as the Eleuterio Tan who showed up at the bank to withdraw
the money. Jojo Uy, according to Gov. Singson
was very close to FPres. Estrada. [Ibid, pp. 109-110]
Gov. Singson narrated that Atong Ang called him up from
his mother’s house and asked Gov. Singson to go there where they will wait for
the money. Gov. Singson went to the
house of Atong Ang’s mother at
Gov. Singson frequented the house of FPres. Estrada. At one time, the latter asked him again to
make a request for the excise tax allocation which he will approve. Gov. Singson explained that the release of the
money must be continued in big amount so that they could cover up the One
Hundred Thirty Million Pesos (P130,000,000.00). FPres. Estrada agreed but he did not give the
billions promised. Hence, Gov. Singson
could not cover up the (P130,000,000.00). When told by Gov. Singson that the Commission
on Audit (COA) was “pestering” them, FPres. Estrada asked Gov. Singson to cover
it up in the meanwhile. The amount of
Forty Million Pesos (P40,000,000.00) out of the One Hundred Thirty Million
Pesos (P130,000,000.00) was paid to the supplier of the flue curing barn which
were delivered by the supplier and inaugurated by FPres. Estrada as shown by
the pictures taken on that occasion (Exhs.T8 and U8). The flue curing barn was needed by the tobacco
farmers to save time and money. [Ibid, pp. 116-121]
Gov. Singson referred to the inaugural speech of
FPres. Estrada where the latter stated “walang kama-kamaganak, walang kai-kaibigan,
walang kumpa-kumpadre”. Gov. Singson
said after what happened that it would mean even friends should pay to FPres.
Estrada. [Ibid, pp. 122-124]
Gov. Singson demonstrated in Court, from the witness
stand up to the door of the courtroom and back in more or less twenty (20)
seconds, that he, who had smaller built than Atong Ang, could carry a box
containing Twenty Million Pesos (P20,000,000.00) in demonetized bills from the
Central Bank in One Thousand Pesos (P1, 000.00) denomination each. There were twenty bundles of One Million Pesos
(P1,000,000.00) per bundle inside the box. The distance between the witness stand and the
door of the courtroom was thirteen (13) meters. [Ibid, pp. 124-135] The box carried by Gov. Singson weighed more
than ten (10) kilos and five bundles of cash amounting to P5,000,000.00 weighed
4.8 kilos. [Ibid, pp. 172-173]
JAMIS
BATULAN SINGSON (Jamis) further
testified that he, Gov. Singson, his escort Federico Artates, and Driver
Faustino Prudence, left the office of Gov. Singson on
Gov. Singson boarded the car of Atong Ang and
instructed Jamis to just follow them to FPres. Estrada’s house at
MARIA ELIZABETH GOZO BALAGOT testified
that she was the Manager of Land
Bank Vigan Branch from
According to witness Balagot, on
Witness
Balagot confirmed that on
On
Witness
Balagot then advised Land Bank Shaw Branch to cancel the demand drafts and the
amounts covered will just be coursed through the individual accounts by
inter-branch transaction. Witness
Balagot then prepared an Inter-Branch Transaction Advice for Eleuterio Tan
(Exh. Z18) and Delia Rajas (Exh. Y18) and credited the
amount of Forty Million Pesos (P40,000,000,00) and Fifty Million Pesos
(P50,000,000.00) to their respective accounts.
The cancelled demand drafts were returned to Land Bank Vigan Branch with
a Memorandum (Exh. A19) dated
Witness
Balagot also identified and affirmed her Sworn Affidavit (Exhibit B19
and submarkings) dated
MARIA
CARIDAD MANAHAN RODENAS was the
cashier at Land Bank Shaw Branch. She
testified that she knew a person by the name of Alma Alfaro as the authorized
representative of valued clients, Mrs. Catalina Ang and Yolanda Uy, and as an
account holder of the branch. [TSN,
Witness Rodenas testified that on August 27, 1998,
she assisted Alma Alfaro open her own savings account with the branch with an initial
deposit of One Thousand Pesos (P1,000.00) (Exh. H13). Alfaro presented her school ID (Exh. F13-2)
and SSS card (Exh. F13-1) as valid IDs and personally accomplished
the signature card (Exh. G13).
Alfaro indicated her business address to be c/o Power Express and
residence address as
When
Alma Alfaro returned to the bank on the following day, she proceeded to
withdraw Forty Million Pesos (P40,000,000.00) (Exh. J13) in cash
from her account. [TSN,
Witness Rodenas testified that Tan and Rajas asked
that they be accommodated in Land Bank Shaw Branch because they considered it
too risky to encash their demand drafts in the cash department in Buendia,
Eleuterio Tan presented two IDs (Exh. N13)
and accomplished a specimen signature card (Exh. O13) and cash
deposit slip (Exh. P13) for One Thousand Pesos (P1,000.00). Witness Rodenas identified Eleuterio Tan in a
picture (Exh. F9). Delia
Rajas also presented two IDs (Exh. Q13) and accomplished a specimen
signature card (Exh. R13) and deposit slip (Exh. S13) for
One Thousand Pesos (P1,000.00).
Witness
Rodenas sent the cancelled demand drafts by facsimile to Land Bank Vigan Branch
and after sometime the Vigan Branch credited online the proceeds of the demand
drafts to the newly created accounts of Tan and Rajas. The original of the
demand drafts were later returned to the Vigan Branch. [TSN,
SPO2
FREDERICO APENES ARTATES was a
policeman since 1988. At the time of his
testimony, he was assigned at the Vigan City Police Station but detailed to Gov.
Singson as security escort.
Witness Artates testified that on August 31, 1998, he
was in the office of Gov. Singson at the
ILONOR ANDRES MADRID testified that she
was the Chief of License Section, Operations Division, Land Transportation
Office.
GWEN MARIE
JUDY DUMOL SAMONTINA was the
Assistant Vice-President and Head of Records and
Witness
Samontina brought with her the Social Security Form E-1 (Exh. V11-1
and sub markings) filed by Delia Ilan Rajas.
This form showed that her address was
II. EVIDENCE FOR THE DEFENSE
During his testimony, accused FORMER PRESIDENT JOSEPH EJERCITO ESTRADA vehemently denied that he
asked Gov. Singson to give him part of Ilocos Sur’s share on the tobacco excise
tax imposed by Republic Act No. 7171; that when he was approached by Gov. Singson
regarding the said share of his province, he told Singson to make a formal
request, and that Singson already had a prepared request (Exh. Q) to which
FPres. Estrada wrote his marginal note addressed to then Budget Secretary
Diokno, stating: “Please see if you can accommodate”.
FPres. Estrada explained that he could not have
alluded to his election expenses because contributions to his 1998 Presidential
Campaign were overflowing; that he rejected many contributions which kept
pouring in as it was the case with a very popular candidate like him; that he
even asked his party treasurers to distribute campaign funds to their candidates
for Mayor, Congressman and Governor, that Gov. Singson got a big share of the
campaign funds, that Gov. Singson’s testimony on the percentage he allegedly
asked for was a lie as he would not take away funds intended for farmers and
that in fact during his term as President he rejected an offer of Fourteen
Million Dollars (US $14,000,000) for him to sign a sovereign guaranty; that he
did not know Alma Alfaro, Eleuterio Tan or Mr. Uy, and Delia Rajas, that being
the President, he could not have conspired with Delia Rajas whom he heard was a
cook; that he met Charlie “Atong” Ang sometime in 1993 or 1994, when the latter
was introduced to him by his friend, Jojo Antonio; that he was not that close
to Ang; that Atong Ang never went to his house at Polk Street, Greenhills, San
Juan to deliver money from the excise tax as testified to by Gov. Singson; that
the garage in his house could not accommodate Atong Ang’s vehicle since the
Presidential Car was parked there and there were security arrangements if he
was at home and that Gov. Singson was merely passing the blame to him because
he would not help Gov. Singson with his problem with the Commission on Audit. [TSN,
On
FPres. Estrada disclaimed any knowledge of Prosecution’s
Exhibits “A19”, “X18” and “Y18” and also
Landbank check dated
According to FPres. Estrada, he did not know, nor have
seen, Alma Alfaro, the person mentioned in the certification that inter-branch
deposits made by the provincial government of Ilocos Sur from August 27 to 28,
1998, particularly on August 27, 1998 to Account No. 0561-0445-38 in the name
of said Alma Alfaro in the amount of Forty Million Pesos (P40,000,000.00). He said that he saw her for the first time only
during the Impeachment Trial. [TSN,
FPres. Estrada likewise denied any knowledge of
prosecution’s exhibits presented to identify Victor Jose Uy (a.k.a. Eleuterio
Tan) (Exhs. “N9”, “N13”, “T11” & “J”);
Delia Rajas (Exhs. “V”, “W”, “H”, “H13”, “Y”, “Y-3”, “Z11”,
“A12”, “B12-4”, “C12”, “D12” &
“Q13”) and Alma Alfaro (Exhs. “F12” & “F13”).
[TSN, March 29, 2006, pp.59-68,79,80]
FPres. Estrada likewise disclaimed any knowledge of
prosecution’s exhibits regarding the P130,000,000.00 excise tax share of Ilocos
Sur [Exhs. H13, I13, J13, K13, M13,
L13, O13, P13-1, R13, S13,
E13, U13, V13, V13-1, W13,
W13-1, X13, X13-1, Y13, Z13,
M17, N17, O17, P17, Q17,
R17, S17, L18, M18, N18,
O18, P18, Q18, R18, S18,
T18, B19, Z18. [TSN,
FPres. Estrada also belied Gov. Singson’s testimony
of that he ordered Gov. Singson to cover up his unliquidated cash advances by countering
that Gov. Singson tried to cover up his own cash advances as the Commission on
Audit was already going after him and he wanted to pass the blame to FPres.
Estrada. [TSN,
FPres. Estrada narrated that Director Saunar informed
him that the case against Gov. Singson was clear and should be filed right away
with the Office of the Ombudsman. Director Saunar gave him a copy of the
complaint–affidavit of the NBI (Exh. 200, 200-N, 200-0, 200-P, 200-Q)
recommending the filing of the appropriate charges against Gov. Singson and
other Ilocos Sur provincial officials among others for the non-delivery of the
supplier NS International, Inc. of the equipment for the flue curing barn and
re-drying plant in the amount of One Hundred Seventy Million Pesos (P170,000,000.00)
(Exh. 200-R). [TSN,
The last time FPres. Estrada talked to Gov. Singson
was when he stopped over at San Francisco USA for a speaking engagement on his
way to an official visit to Washington he was surprised that Gov. Singson who
was not a member of his delegation fetched him at the airport. After his speaking engagement, he went up to
his room where Congressman Asistio and Gov. Singson had a big problem with the
COA in Ilocos Sur because the provincial auditor did not want to cooperate with
him. Gov. Singson asked FPres. Estrada
to help transfer the said auditor, which request he refused because COA is an
independent constitutional body. Gov. Singson
insisted that FPres. Estrada call the COA Chairman to interfere in his behalf. He reminded Gov. Singson that he should not
look after himself but he should protect the name of the Office of the
President. Gov. Singson then abruptly
stood up and grudgingly left. FPres. Estrada
came to know of the name of the COA provincial auditor during the Senate Blue
Ribbon Committee hearing and he was Atty. Agustin Chan who testified at the
hearing and demanded that Gov. Singson liquidate his cash advances. Later, FPres. Estrada read from the newspaper
that Chan was ambushed and killed in a town in Ilocos
ATTY. AGATON S. DACAYANAN was the State
Auditor of the Commission on Audit (COA) assigned at the
Witness
Dacayanan then presented and identified the Annual Audit Reports for the years
ended December 31, 1995 (Exh. 187 and submarkings); December 31, 1996 (Exh. 188
and submarkings); December 31, 1997 (Exh. 189 and submarkings); and, December
31, 1998 (Exh. 190 and submarkings).
[TSN dated
BONIFACIO
M. ONA was Director III of COA and the
Officer-In-Charge of its Special Audit Office.
Witness Ona testified that one of his duties as OIC of the Special Audit
Office was to transmit the Report prepared by their audit teams to the
different auditing units and as such he had the chance to review as to its form
the Special Audit Report for the Province of Ilocos Sur for the period 1999
(SAO Report No. 99-31) (Exh. 191 and
submarkings), which he presented to the Court by virtue of a subpoena duces tecum, and after which he
transmitted the same to the Governor of Ilocos Sur. [TSN dated October 4, 2004]
ELVIRA
JAVIER FELIX was State Auditor IV of
the COA. Witness testified that she was the
Officer-in-Charge of the Provincial Auditor’s Office from October 5, 2001 to
July 31, 2002, and she presented and identified Annual Audit Reports for the
Province of Ilocos Sur for the years ended December 31, 2001 (Exh. 192 and
submarkings), and December 31, 2002 (Exh. 193 and submarkings).
Witness
Felix also presented and identified copies of the Annual Audit Reports of the
Province of Ilocos Sur for the years ended December 31, 1999 (Exh. 194 and
submarkings) and December 31, 2000 (Exh. 195 and submarkings) which she secured
from the Provincial Auditor’s Office, and which were prepared during the term
of then Provincial Auditor Atty. Agustin Chan who was killed in an ambush on
October 4, 2001. [TSN dated
ELIZABETH
M. SAVELLA was an Auditor of the
Corporate Government Sector of the COA.
Savella testified that she was assigned previously with the Special Audit
Office of the Commission of Audit and was designated in 1999 as the Team Leader
of a Special Audit Team that conducted a special audit of the
Witness
stated that the scope of the audit was the financial transaction and operation
of the
CONGRESSMAN LUIS A. ASISTIO testified
that he knows Gov. Singson and met him several times. He said that on July 24, 2000, he accompanied
Gov. Singson to see FPres. Estrada at his room at the Fairmont Hotel at
Asistio clarified that in the many meetings he had with Gov. Singson during the period late August to September 2000, they never talked about alleged receipt of monies from R.A. 7171 and he knew of these issues only during the Impeachment Trial. He thinks that these are mere figments of Gov. Singson’s imagination since they never talked of anything except the provincial leadership.
Gov. Singson also did not mention the name of accused
Mayor Jinggoy Estrada. He added that
Gov. Singson at one time went to his house when there was an ongoing rally at
Asistio added that he watched the Impeachment Trial against FPres. Estrada and thinks that it is a farce because in all their conversations, Gov. Singson never mentioned about R.A. 7171 nor talked about jueteng, except probably when he said “kunin na nilang lahat huwag lang yung liderato”.
Asistio stated that in his visits to Malacañang during
the time of FPres. Estrada, at least three times a week, he never saw Atong Ang
there because Atong Ang was banned by FPres. Estrada from entering Malacañang. [TSN
dated
CARLOS P. SAUNAR was Regional Director of the National Bureau of Investigation. In October 2000, he was the Chief of the Anti-Graft Division of the NBI, assuming the position from 1997 or 1998 up to July 2001, and as such was tasked to investigate the public disclosures made by then Gov. Singson as per instructions of then NBI Director Federico Opinion, who was, in turn, directed by then Justice Secretary Artemio G. Tuquero in a Memorandum dated October 10, 2000 (Exh. 199 and submarkings).
In the conduct of their investigation, Saunar and his
team of investigators secured documents from the COA, such as, the Audit
Reports of the Provincial Government of Ilocos Sur and the Schedule of
Unliquidated Cash Advances, and subpoenaed the concerned public officials and
employees of the
After evaluating the reports and evidence, witness submitted an Evaluation Disposition Form (Exh. 198 and submarkings) dated 16 October 2000 which made mention of 11 cases (Annex A of Disposition Form) (Exh. 198-B) of irregularities that were assigned to different teams for investigation. [TSN, October 13, 2004, pp. 80, 84]
The result of Saunar’s investigation on the P170,000,000.00 alleged unliquidated cash advances of Governor Singson and some other cash advances was contained in a Revised Report of Investigation which became the subject of a Complaint-Affidavit (Exh. 200 and submarkings) dated 10 January 2001 signed by Carlos S. Caabay, then acting Director, NBI, filed with the Office of the Ombudsman. Witness explained that the Revised Report of Investigation traced the P170,000,000.00 from its source up to its liquidation. [TSN, October 13, 2004, p. 96]
Saunar testified that they made a record check and searched,
as requested by the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee, for the whereabouts of
accused Alma Alfaro, accused Eleuterio Tan and accused Delia Rajas but failed
to locate them. [TSN,
The amount of P163,663,636.27 as appearing in the working paper, which was also the subject matter of the complaint-affidavit filed with the Ombudsman (Exh. 200), is supposed to be the amount that was the settlement of the cash advance of P170,000,000.00 less 30% withholding tax supposed to be remitted to the BIR. The P170,000,000.00 pesos came from the P200,000,000.00 representing the share of the Province of Ilocos Sur from the excise taxes collected pursuant to R.A. 7171 that was released by the DBM. The P170,000,000.00 was then cash advanced by Gov. Singson from the account of the Province of Ilocos Sur in LBP Vigan Branch, wherein a certain Marina Atendido deposited the amount of P40,000,000.00 in favor of the account of Alma Alfaro at the LBP Shaw Boulevard Branch through an inter-branch accommodation. The same was withdrawn in cash by Alma Alfaro. [TSN, October 25, 2004, pp. 57-63]
As to the remaining P130,000,000.00, four (4) demand
drafts were applied for by Maricar Paz, one of which was issued in favor of
Luccio Saberrio in the amount of P40,000,000.00 which was withdrawn in LBP
Makati, where the amount of P35,000,000.00 was deposited to another savings
account (the account number is indicated in the demand draft) in the same LBP
Makati while the P5,000,000.00 was cashed. The second demand draft pertains to another
P40,000,000.00 pesos in favor of Eleuterio Tan which was negotiated at the LBP
Shaw Boulevard Branch but was cancelled, and in lieu of this, the corresponding
amount was wire transferred from LBP Vigan to
Saunar reiterated that they conducted an in-depth investigation of the expose’ made by Gov. Singson, which includes alleged violations on the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices, malversation of public funds and violation of R.A. 4200, pursuant to the memorandum issued by the Secretary of Justice. However, their investigation so far has not reached the point of illegal jueteng or illegal gambling. They did not conduct an in-depth investigation on the activities of Mr. Atong Ang and FPres. Estrada because they have not reached that point where the evidence would show that they have participated. [TSN, October 25, 2004, pp. 102-104]
However, they already filed a complaint-affidavit
dated
Saunar further testified that on November 2000,
Director Opinion directed him to accommodate interviews on the result of their
investigation in connection with the P170,000,000.00 alleged cash advance of
Gov. Singson which was done in his office when he was still the Chief of the
NBI Anti-Graft Division, and the result of which appeared in a VCD. [TSN,
[TSN dated October 13, 2004, TSN dated October 25, 2004, TSN dated October 27, 2004 and TSN dated November 3, 2004]
BANGKO
SENTRAL NG PILIPINAS (BSP) OCULAR INSPECTION
On
If
the P130,000,000.00 were in P500.00 denominations and divided into 260 bundles
with each bundle consisting of 1000 pieces of P500.00 bills amounting to
P500,000.00, the P130,000,000.00 pesos would fit in 13 boxes.
A
Certification issued by the BSP that the P1,000,000.00 pesos in P1000.00 bills
would weigh about just under a kilo has already been submitted by the accused
in the previous hearing. [TSN dated
FINDINGS
OF FACT
Re: Sub-paragraph (b) of the Amended Information
With
respect to the predicate act of divesting, receiving or misappropriating a
portion of the tobacco excise tax share allocated for the Province of Ilocos
Sur, this Court finds that indeed an amount of P130,000,000.00 out of the
P200,000,000.00 share in tobacco excise taxes of the Province of Ilocos Sur was
withdrawn from the provincial coffers and misappropriated and misused to the
damage and prejudice of the said province.
The
evidence presented before this Court establish beyond doubt that Gov. Singson
initiated the process that eventually led to the allocation and release of
funds by the national government to the Province of Ilocos Sur of the amount of
P200,000,000.00 from the excise tax imposed pursuant to Republic Act No.
7171. As chief executive of the
According
to Jamis Singson and Artates, they accompanied William Ang, the brother of
Atong Ang, to Westmont Bank to withdraw money but they just waited outside the
bank. They helped carry the four (4) boxes
to the vehicle when William and the security guards brought the said boxes
outside the bank. Thereafter, they
joined William transport the boxes to the home of Catalina Ang, and later to
the residence of FPres. Estrada at
The
prosecution’s evidence that only the amount of P90,000,000.00 was deposited in
Westmont Bank created a loophole in the impression given by the testimony of
Gov. Singson that he and Atong Ang were supposed to bring the P130,000,000.00
withdrawn from Westmontbank to the residence of FPres. Estrada. The Court can only speculate that this could
have been the reason why during the Ocular Inspection at the Bangko Sentral ng
Pilipinas (BSP) the amount of P130,000,000.00 could not fit the four (4) boxes
described by Gov. Singson and the other prosecution witnesses.
There
are also gaps in the prosecution’s evidence on the alleged delivery to FPres.
Estrada of the diverted funds or a portion thereof. It was not established how
much cash was allegedly stashed in the boxes that came from Westmont Bank and
which were unloaded/reloaded at the house of Catalina Ang or how much cash was
in the boxes allegedly brought to FPres. Estrada’s house. No one testified that he saw cash being
handed to FPres. Estrada, Sen. Loi Estrada or Jinggoy Estrada. Serious doubts
are engendered by the bare testimony of Gov. Singson, the prosecution’s star
witness, who, by his own account, did not even touch the boxes of money, nor
count the money inside the boxes that arrived at the home of Catalina Ang and
allegedly reloaded for delivery to
Furthermore,
the record is bereft of evidence to confirm Gov. Singson’s testimony that
FPres. Estrada was interested in the diversion of tobacco excise taxes or that
there was an agreement between Gov. Singson and FPres. Estrada that 10% of any
amount released to the
Xxx xxx xxx Sub-paragraph
(b) alleged the predicate act of diverting, receiving or misappropriating a
portion of the tobacco excise tax share allocated for the
The
recent decision in People of the
Obviously hoping to maneuver around
the above ruling so as to implicate individual respondent for predicate acts
described in sub-paragraphs (b), (c) and (d) of the Amended Information,
petitioner now argues:
It should be emphasized that in the
course of the proceedings in the instant case, respondent Jinggoy Estrada
waived the benefit of the said ruling and opted, instead, to participate, as he
did participate and later proceeded to cross examine witnesses whose
testimonies were clearly offered to prove the other constitutive acts of
Plunder alleged in the Amended Information under sub-paragraphs “b”, “c”, and
“d”.
We disagree.
At bottom, the petitioner assumes
that the ruling accorded “benefits” to respondent Jinggoy that were inexistent
at the start of that case. But no such
benefits were extended, as the Court did not read into the Amended Information,
as couched, something not there in the first place. Respondent Jinggoy’s participation, if that
be the case, in the proceedings involving sub-paragraphs “b”, “c”, and “d”, did
not change the legal situation set forth in the aforequoted portion of the
Court’s ruling in G.R. No. 148965. For
when it passed, in G.R. NO. 148965, upon the inculpatory acts envisaged and
ascribed in the Amended Information against Jinggoy, the Court merely defined
what he was indicted and can be penalized for.
In legal jargon, the Court informed him of the nature and cause of the
accusation against him, right guaranteed an accused under the
Constitution. In fine, all that the
Court contextually did in G.R. No. 148965 was no more than to implement his
right to be informed of the nature of the accusation in the light of the filing
of the Amended Information as worded. If
at all, the Court’s holding in G.R. No. 148965 freed individual respondent from
the ill effects of a wrong interpretation that might be given to the Amended
Information.
The mere fact that FPres. Estrada endorsed Gov.
Singson’s request for release of funds to the then DBM Secretary for review
does not indicate any undue interest on the part of FPres. Estrada in the grant
of Gov. Singson’s request. The tenor of
the marginal note itself was simply for the DBM Secretary to “see if [he] can
accommodate the request of Governor Singson.”
Finally, not a scintilla of evidence links FPres. Estrada to any of the
obscure personalities who withdrew the P130,000,000.00, namely, Delia Rajas,
Alma Alfaro, and Eleuterio Tan and to any of the official bank documents that
made possible the diversion and misappropriation of the aforesaid public funds.
In
sum, the paper trail in relation to the P130,000,000.00 diverted tobacco excise
taxes began with Gov. Singson and ended with Atong Ang. This Court does not find the evidence
sufficient to establish beyond reasonable doubt that FPres. Estrada or any
member of his family had instigated and/or benefited from the diversion of said
funds.
RE: SUB-PARAGRAPH C OF THE
AMENDED INFORMATION
_____________________________
(c) by
directing, ordering and compelling, FOR HIS PERSONAL GAIN AND BENEFIT,
the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) TO PURCHASE, 351,878,000
SHARES OF STOCKS, MORE OR LESS, and the Social Security System (SSS), 329,855,000
SHARES OF STOCK, MORE OR LESS, OF THE BELLE CORPORATION IN THE AMOUNT OF MORE
OR LESS ONE BILLION ONE HUNDRED TWO MILLION NINE HUNDRED SIXTY FIVE THOUSAND
SIX HUNDRED SEVEN PESOS AND FIFTY CENTAVOS [P1,102,965,607.50] AND MORE OR LESS
SEVEN HUNDRED FORTY FOUR MILLION SIX HUNDRED TWELVE THOUSAND AND FOUR HUNDRED
FIFTY PESOS [P744,612,450.00], RESPECTIVELY, OR A TOTAL OF MORE OR LESS ONE
BILLION EIGHT HUNDRED FORTY SEVEN MILLION FIVE HUNDRED SEVENTY EIGHT THOUSAND
FIFTY SEVEN PESOS AND FIFTY CENTAVOS [P1,847,578,057.50]; AND BY COLLECTING OR
RECEIVING, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, BY HIMSELF AND/OR IN CONNIVANCE WITH JOHN
DOES AND JANE DOES, COMMISSIONS OR PERCENTAGES BY REASON OF SAID PURCHASES OF
SHARES OF STOCK IN THE AMOUNT OF ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY NINE MILLION SEVEN HUNDRED
THOUSAND PESOS [P189,700,000.00], MORE OR LESS, FROM THE BELLE CORPORATION
WHICH BECAME PART OF THE DEPOSIT IN THE EQUITABLE-PCI BANK UNDER THE ACCOUNT
NAME “JOSE VELARDE
Under paragraph (c) of the Amended Information, accused
FPres. Estrada was charged with the crime of plunder, for having willfully,
unlawfully and criminally acquired, amassed or accumulated and acquired
ill-gotten wealth in the amount of P189,700,000.00 representing commissions or
percentages by reason of the purchase of shares of stock of Belle Corporation
by SSS and GSIS.
The gravamen of this specific charge is whether FPres.
Estrada, unjustly enriched himself at the expense and to the damage and
prejudice of the Filipino people and the Republic by receiving a commission of
P187 Million as consideration for the purchase by SSS and GSIS of Belle Shares.
Even if the Prosecution is able to
establish that FPres. Estrada used his official position, authority,
relationship and influence and directed, ordered and compelled Carlos A. Arellano
(then President of the SSS) and Federico C. Pascual (then President of GSIS)
for SSS and GSIS to buy Belle shares
with money of the GSIS and SSS which are held in trust by the said institutions
for the millions of employees of the government and the private sector, such
fact alone does not constitute an overt or criminal act, the commission of
which would warrant a conviction for plunder. Prosecution must establish that, in
consideration of the purchase by GSIS and SSS of the Belle Shares, FPres.
Estrada received the amount of P189,700,000.00 as commission.
In
discharging its burden of proof that FPres. Estrada directed, ordered and compelled, for his personal gain and benefit, the
GSIS to purchase 351,878,000 shares of stock more or less, and the SSS to
purchase 329,855,000 shares of stock more or less, of the Belle Corporation in
the amount of more or less One Billion One Hundred Two Million Nine Hundred
Sixty Five Thousand Six Hundred Seven Pesos And Fifty Centavos (P1,102,965,607.50) and more or less Seven Hundred Forty Four
Million Six Hundred Twelve Thousand And Four Hundred Fifty Pesos
(P744,612,450.00), respectively, or a total of more or less One Billion Eight
Hundred Forty Seven Million Five Hundred Seventy Eight Thousand Fifty Seven
Pesos And Fifty Centavos (P1,847,578,057.50), the prosecution presented
its principal witnesses in the persons of Arellano, Pascual, Ocier and
Capulong.
EVIDENCE FOR THE PROSECUTION
WILLY NG OCIER (Ocier) was the Vice Chairman and Director of Belle Corporation on June
24, 1999. He testified that SSI
Management, a company created by Roberto Ongpin was the Selling stockholder of
Belle shares totaling 650,000,000. [TSN
January 9, 2002, p.94] Roberto Ongpin,
in his personal capacity, originally gave an option to Mark Jimenez to purchase
these 650,000,000 shares of Belle [Ibid., pp. 67- 68] because Roberto Ongpin at
that time granted (sic) to transform Belle Corporation into the foremost gaming
company in the Philippines, and he wanted somebody to help him “acquiring (sic)
licenses to do Jai-Alai and to do Super Sabong, Bingo, Casino, etc., etc.” [Ibid.
pp. 71 and 72] and Mr. Roberto Ongpin whom he held in high regard, told him
that Mark Jimenez was a very close friend of FPres. Estrada. [Ibid. p. 84] The option was given as an incentive for Mark
Jimenez as a favor to Roberto Ongpin. [Ibid. p. 88] Mark Jimenez was not able to exercise the
option because Ongpin was ousted from the Board of Belle on June 15, 1999. [Ibid.
p. 90]
After a
meeting of the Board of Directors of Belle Corporation on July 20, 1999 (Exh. P), when Dichaves asked Ocier about the option
given by Ongpin to Mark Jimenez and if the option can be given to him, Ocier
told Dichaves that the option cannot be given anymore because of the fact that
the shares are intended to be sold in light of a recent call for unpaid
subscription. [TSN, January 7, 2002, p. 17]
The Board of Director of Belle Corporation decided to make a call for
payment of unpaid subscriptions to raise money to address the debt problem of
the Corporation. [TSN, October 1, 2001,
p. 79] When asked what can be done in
relation to the Belle shares, Ocier explained to Dichaves that he needs the
latter’s help in selling the Belle shares to cover for the 75 per cent unpaid
subscription and the two of them basically agreed to divide the work wherein
Ocier would contact his foreign brokers to sell the shares and Dichaves will
contact his local counterparts or contacts if he can sell the shares locally. [TSN,
January 7, 2002, p.18]
Ocier
further testified that overtime (sic) the market was not very strong, so the
foreign brokers took quite a while to make decisions about their action of
buying Belle shares. [
After a few
weeks, Dichaves called Ocier and told the latter that the transaction may be
pushing through but that Dichaves wanted to take up a matter of condition that
was proposed for the transaction to push through which was to the effect that
Ocier will have to give a commission for the transaction to push through. [Ibid
.pp. 20-21] Ocier testified that since the shares involved was approximately
600,000,000 to 650,000,000 and the price of Belle at that time at about P3.00
per share, the total expected proceeds of the sale was almost Two Billion Pesos
(P2,000,000,000.00) and the commission that Jaime was asking for amounted to
Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00). [Ibid. p. 23]
When asked
to whom the commission should be given, Ocier answered that according to
Dichaves, the condition was being imposed by FPres. Estrada. [Ibid. p. 26] When asked for his reaction to the
information conveyed by Dichaves that it was FPres. Estrada that imposed the
condition, Ocier testified that his reaction was that he felt that it was quite
a big amount of commission to be paid and that normally, in real estate and
stock transactions, commissions range between three (3) to five (5) percent
only and he told Dichaves that he finds that quite high [Ibid. p. 34], to which Dichaves answered that “that
was the condition.” [Ibid. p. 36] When
asked what his answer was to the answer of Dichaves that that was the
condition, Ocier answered that he was constrained to agree because Dichaves
told him that “that was the only way for the transaction to push through.” [
CARLOS ALMARIO ARELLANO (Arellano) was appointed Chairman and President of
SSS on July 1, 1998 by FPres. Estrada. [TSN, November 7, 2001, p. 49] The transaction with Belle was initiated on
October 6, 1999. He got a call from FPres.
Estrada and was told: “Gusto ko kayo ni Ding Pascual ay tignan ninyo ang
pagbili ng Belle Corporation sa stock market. [Ibid. pp. 75- 77] He thought that the words “tignan ninyo” was
an instruction for him. [Ibid. p. 80] After
the instruction, he asked the people in the Investment Department of SSS to
take a look and review the shares of Belle as an investment item in the
portfolio of SSS and also to find out to what extent the SSS can further
increase the SSS position in the said stock. [Ibid. p. 82]
As far as the Investment
Committee was concerned, they agreed that Belle is still possible investment
for the SSS. [Ibid. p. 94] In answer to
the instruction of the President he said “Opo, opo.” [
FEDERICO
CALIMBAS PASCUAL (Pascual) was the President
of GSIS in 1999, testified that he had a meeting with FPres. Estrada on September
6, 1999 and in that meeting, he was instructed by the FPres. Estrada to buy
Belle Shares. It was only in October 9, 1999 when he ordered his people to buy
Belle Shares because First: he was hoping that the President was not serious in
his September 6, 1999 instruction and he was hoping the President would forget
his instruction. [TSN, November 22, 2001, p. 20] Second, because he was not very comfortable
with Belle because some people are of the opinion that Belle Shares, because
the corporation is involved in jai-alai and gambling, is “speculative flavor.” [
In another telephone conversation with FPres. Estrada
on October 9, 1999, he felt that the President was more serious in his
instructions in the sense that, he was away and there was this telephone call
and he felt that FPres. Estrada was already agitated. [Ibid. p. 24] In the telephone call, he was asked by FPres.
Estrada “bakit hindi ka pa bumibili ng Belle” to which he replied “tatawag ho
ako sa head office at papa-aralan ko.” [Ibid. pp. 56-57]
When he returned to the
On cross-examination, he testified that his purpose
in executing his affidavit was to remove from the minds of the doubting public
that he benefited from the Belle Shares. [Ibid. p. 48; Exh. O to O-4] The alleged money making that intervened or
supervened in the purchase of Belle Shares was not included in his affidavit
because the purpose was to show how GSIS purchased shares of Belle on the
instruction of the Former President. [Ibid. p. 54] The purchases of Belle Shares were made when
he was abroad. FPres. Estrada gave him
the instructions to buy and he also made instructions to his people to buy,
that was the chain of events. [Ibid. pp. 68; 74] He authorized the purchase of Belle Shares
only if Belle was a qualified share. [Ibid. p. 69] If he did not make that call to the people in
GSIS about the Former President’s instruction, there was probably no
possibility of GSIS acquiring Belle Shares during that period of time beginning
October 13 to October 21. [Ibid. p. 77] Except
for the instruction, there was nothing irregular, illegal or anomalous about
the transaction and he does not know whether somebody benefited from the
purchase of Belle Shares that took place between October 13 to 21. [Ibid, p. 83]
RIZALDY
TADEO CAPULONG (Capulong) was the Deputy
Chief Actuary and Assistant Vice-President of the Securities Trading and
Management Department of the Social Security System (SSS). He headed the Actuary Department which was
responsible in making long term and short term projections of the revenues and
expenditures of SSS. As AVP of the Securities
Trading and Management Department, Capulong was in charge of providing research
and operational support to top SSS offices with regard to equities and
investment.
Capulong testified that he made the recommendation
which cost the SSS P1,300,000,000.00 because per his research, evaluation and
verification, it was a profitable transaction.
He had gone into the validity and legality of the acquisition of the
Belle Shares and he was convinced that they were all proper, legal and beyond
reproach. He signed the recommendation
and submitted it for approval of the Executive Management Committee and then
for the approval of the Social Security Commission. Capulong clarified that it was an approval
for allocation not for funding. For SSS
to be able to acquire shares of their corporation, it was necessary that there
was an approval for an allocation. SSS
had the amount of money but it was not reserved for Belle transactions even
with the approval of the recommendation.
The money will only be identified and allocated at the time of transaction. [TSN dated February 6, 11, 13, and 18, 2002]
EVIDENCE
FOR THE DEFENSE
REYNALDO
PASTORFIDE PALMIERY (Palmiery) was
the Senior Executive Vice-President and the Chief Operating Officer and Member
of the Board of Trustees of the Government Service Insurance System
(GSIS). Palmiery was the Chairman of the
Investment Committee of the GSIS in 1998 to 2000. The Investment Committee discusses the new
proposals for investment which were elevated by the Corporate Finance Group of
the GSIS. The process is that the
Finance Corporate Group first studies and evaluates stocks which are not yet
qualified and accredited to be purchased and elevates this to the Investment
Committee for discussion, and if it is approved by the Investment Committee
then it is elevated to the board for approval.
Palmiery
testified that the GSIS had been trading all Belle Shares in 1993. The first acquisition of GSIS then was about
18 million shares, or 5% of the outstanding stocks of Belle Corporation, and
that the GSIS booked an aggregate trading gain of P145,859,195.95 on the
purchase of Belle Shares alone (Exh. 236 and submarkings).
Palmiery
then presented and identified a Joint Counter-Affidavit which the members of
the Investment Committee filed with the Office of the Ombudsman. He confirmed the statement contained in the
last paragraph of the joint affidavit that the Investment in Belle Shares was
made solely on the basis of the compliance with the law and GSIS internal
guidelines. Palmiery was not aware of
any phone call made by FPres. Estrada to Pascual. He further explained that the acquisition of
the Belles Shares was pursuant to the directive of General Manager
Pascual. Palmiery related that he
received a call from Pascual and instructed him to review and study the
prospects of Belle Corporation with the end objective to purchase shares of
stock of the said corporation up to the limit allowed under the existing
guidelines of GSIS. The evaluation was pursued
and approved.
On
cross-examination, Palmiery admitted that under GSIS Resolution No. 284 series
of 1992, General Manager Pascual was given the sole authority to trade in
stocks listed or traded in the two (2) major stocks exchange, and under GSIS
Resolution No. 273, he was granted the continuing authority to buy Belle
Shares. Resolution No. 273 was then
amended in 1998 by the GSIS providing for the continuing authority for the
President and General Manager as well as the Executive Vice President and the
Senior Vice President for Corporate Finance to purchase and sell stocks traded
in the Stocks Exchange at prevailing prices.
On
re-direct examination, Palmiery testified that when General Manager Pascual
called and instructed him to purchase Belle Shares the number of shares to be
purchased was specified to be within the limits of the GSIS Guidelines which
was the number of shares equivalent to one board seat or 10% of the outstanding
shares whichever is higher. [TSN dated December 13, 2004 and TSN dated January
24, 2005]
HON. HERMOGENES DIAZ
MERCEDITAS GARCIA GACULITAN (Gaculitan)
was the Corporate Secretary of the Social Security Commission (SSS). Gaculitan testified that before these
investments in Belle Resources Corporation were made prior approval of the
investment by the Commission en banc were obtained since all purchases and all
investments are required to be approved or passed upon by the Social Security
Commission. [TSN dated December 13, 2004]
Accused
FORMER PRESIDENT JOSEPH EJERCITO ESTRADA
testified on his own defense. The
relevant portions of his testimony are set forth below.
The purchase of Belle Shares according
to accused FPres. Estrada
In
the Memorandum for FPres. Estrada, the defense stated that under this
indictment, the Prosecution incur the bounden duty to prove:
1. accused Estrada’s acts constitutive of
directing, ordering and compelling the GSIS and SSS to buy Belle Shares;
2. the purchase were made solely due to the
said acts of compulsion by accused
Estrada;
3. the extent and parameter of Estrada’s
acts relative to the questioned purchases;
4. the alleged profit commission is
government fund or money; and
5. damages to the government or People of
the
The
Defense claims that the prosecution’s evidence itself shows that (1) the
transaction complained of was perfectly valid, since accused FPres. Estrada did
not direct, order or compel SSS and GSIS to buy Belle Shares and (2) there is
no proof that any commission was paid to the accused. [Defense Memorandum, p.
192]
To
bolster its claim that the purchase of Belle Shares was a perfectly valid
transaction, the Defense pointed to the following portions of Arellano’s
testimony:
1. That
the purchase of Belle Shares was a routine transaction in the regular course of
business, for SSS had previously purchased Belle Shares at profit;
2. What was told by FPres. Estrada to
Arellano was simply to initiate the acquisition of Belle Shares. How many shares he was ordered to buy and
at how much price per share, was never dealt with in the phone conversation;
3. The above notwithstanding, Arellano
proceeded on his own volition with the acquisition of the 249 Million Belle
Shares.
4. The Decision to purchase was exclusively
his and the policy making body of SSS.
[Ibid.
pp. 193-194, citing TSN, November 8, 2001, pp. 63, 73-74, 75-76]
The Defense argues that the reason why
Arellano testified in the manner he did and executed an affidavit implicating FPres.
Estrada in the instant plunder case notwithstanding that there was nothing
irregular, illegal or anomalous in the October 21, 1999 acquisition of Belle
Shares was because his testimonies and affidavit are his last ditch effort to
exculpate himself from possible plunder charges where he may be detained
without bail considering that plunder is a capital offense. [Ibid. p. 197]
Likewise, the Defense cited the testimony
of Capulong who testified that he examined and audited all the acquisition
papers and the various confirmation slips and official receipts covering the
acquisition and found them to be in order. Hence he had no objection to, but on
the contrary, approved the payment of the said acquisition. Said witness also
testified that as far as he was concerned, there was nothing illegal or
irregular or anomalous in the SSS purchase of Belle Shares in October 21, 1999
and that it was a legal investment and a valid investment that is in the list
of investment of SSS. That it is not an irregular investment and it is said
that it might be somewhat not ordinary in the sense that in this case there was
a call. [Ibid. p. 198, citing TSN,
November 14, 2001, p. 53]
Insofar as the acquisition by GSIS of
Belle Shares, the Defense argued that the purchase by GSIS was in accordance
with investment policy and rules.
The Defense sought to establish that the
Belle Shares were qualified under GSIS policy and charter and GSIS may by
itself and in accordance with its rules, purchase Belle Shares without the need
of any order or compulsion from anybody as shown by the testimony of Pascual,
the President of GSIS when he admitted that even way back in 1993, GSIS had
been purchasing or dealing with Belle Shares and had already made profits at
the extent of around P145,000,000.00 since 1993 up to the present prior to his
coming in as the new General Manager of GSIS. [TSN, November 22, 2001, pp. 61
to 62] That the purchase was in
accordance with the GSIS policy was established by Pascual’s testimony that the
trading department under the Corporate Finance Group investigated and made
further inquiries in connection with the shares and concluded that there would
be no violation that could have been committed by GSIS in the purchase of the
shares. [TSN, December 3, 2001, pp. 14 and 15]
Pascual further testified that the price of P3.13 per share was the
worth of the shares around the time it was purchased and it was reported to him
by his people that the reason why they bought so much was because there was a
history of profitability and that they already had a P1,000,000,000.00 turnover
plus and he felt that it was “a good buying afterwards.” (sic) [Defense Memorandum, p. 204] Pascual also testified that he had no
information if anybody benefited from the purchase of Belle Shares that took
place on October 13 to 21 and admitted that GSIS was suffering a paper loss
because of the purchase. [Ibid. p.
204-205, citing TSN, November 22, 2001, pp. 83-84]
Defense argued that assuming arguendo that there was an instruction
from FPres. Estrada for such purchase, such instruction was not too compelling
or irresistible to directly cause the execution of the purchase suggestion and
that such instruction was immaterial because the GSIS Board which approved the
transaction did not receive the alleged instruction of the Former President and
that in the same vein, the GSIS decided on the purchase independently, free
from any compulsion by an outsider as the instruction given by Pascual was to
the effect that a study be conducted and if the Belle Shares are qualified, to
buy within the range of their authority. [Defense Memorandum, pp. 205-206,
citing TSN, December 3, 2001, p. 93]
As to Pascual’s testimony that it was
unusual for FPres. Estrada to call him for the purchase of a (sic) particular
shares, the Defense pointed out that as per admission of Pascual, what he meant
by unusual was that FPres. Estrada called him when he was out of the country.
Defense pointed out however, that as testified by FPres. Estrada, the latter
did not know that Pascual was out of the country when he called. [Ibid. p. 209] Defense pointed out that, by Pascual’s
admission, the GSIS Board was not pressured into finding that the Belle Shares
were okay, above board, and that they were not pressured by anybody into
concluding the purchase. [Ibid. p. 214,
citing TSN, December 3, 2001, p. 93]
FPres. Estrada testified that he appointed
Arellano and Pascual and he knows that Belle Resources is the developer of
Tagaytay Highlands because sometimes, he spends his weekend in Tagaytay
Highlands. [TSN, April 26, 2006 (pm), p. 10-11]
He denied that he instructed or ordered Pascual to buy Belle Shares on
September 6, 1999 during a meeting with him. What he told Pascual was to study
and make due diligence if Belle Shares will be beneficial to the GSIS. To which
Pascual answered “Yes” and that he has this Corporate Finance Group to make the
study. As to the testimony of Pascual
regarding his telephone conversation with FPres. Estrada, the latter testified
that he did not know that Pacual was abroad and he talked to him not about
Belle Shares but about delayed benefits of GSIS members. [Ibid. pp. 17, 24] He denied ordering Pascual to buy Belle
Shares. [Ibid. pp. 15-17] He claimed
there was nothing irregular about his instruction to Pascual when he only told
him to make a serious study and due diligence. [Ibid. p. 22]
As regards Arellano’s testimony, FPres.
Estrada denied that he ever called Arellano nor did he order him to buy Belle
Shares. He remembers that Mr. Jaime
Dichaves told him, that being one of the members of the Board of Directors, the
latter informed him that Belle Resources are offering their stocks to GSIS and
SSS and that Dichaves was looking for investors, local and foreign and he told
Dichaves that it will be upon the study of SSS and GSIS who will decide whether
they are buying or not. [Ibid. p. 25] As
regards the telephone conversation with Arellano, FPres. Estrada testified that
they talked in Tagalog and he said to Arellano to study the offer of Belle
Resources and if it will be beneficial to the government then why not. To which Arellano answered “Yes, sir,” that
he would refer the matter to the Investment Committeee to give due diligence. [Ibid.
pp. 26-27] FPres. Estrada denied that he
pressured Arellano and said that he noticed that the testimony of Pascual and
Arellano are the same as if they are of the same script. [Ibid. p. 29] FPres. Estrada stated that Pascual or
Arellano, admitted buying Belle Shares and they were the ones who decided the
amount and how much to buy and they did not inform him anymore. [Ibid. p. 32] As regards the testimonies of Pascual and Arellano,
FPres. Estrada testified that it seems they have only one lawyer. He learned that Pascual and Arellano were
called by then DOJ Secretary Perez and it was the latter who pressured them to
testify against him and they were threatened to be charged with plunder. He also learned that Secretary Perez gave
them a lady lawyer but he does not know the relation of Perez to that lady
lawyer. [Ibid. p. 37] FPres. Estrada
testified that after Arellano testified in Court, the latter called him and
apologized because according to him, he could not do anything since he was
threatened by Secretary Perez with the words that if they can send the
President to jail, what more of him? [Ibid.
p. 41]
FPres. Estrada also denied knowledge of
the alleged conversation and transaction between Ocier and Dichaves. He testified that Mr. Dichaves was, at that
time, one of the members of the Board of Directors of Belle Resources and a
business man. [Ibid. p. 42] FPres.
Estrada cited instances when he was offered commissions but he rejected them
such as the IMPSA and SGS deals. [Ibid. pp. 45-48] His reaction to Arellano’s statement to him
that the latter was threatened was to say that he understood because the same
thing happened to him when he was offered by Secretary Nani Perez that he could
go to any country of his choice but he refused. [Ibid. pp. 49-50]
FINDINGS
OF FACT
Re: Sub-paragraph
(c) of the Amended Information
We find that the prosecution
has established beyond reasonable doubt that FPres. Estrada directed and instructed
Arellano and Pascual for SSS and GSIS respectively to buy Belle Shares.
As can be culled from the testimonial and
documentary evidence of the Prosecution, the following circumstances surround
the purchase of the Belle Shares by GSIS and SSS.
On July 20, 1999, Ocier
and Dichaves discussed the matter of the sale of the 650,000,000 shares of
Belle, in the light of a recent call for payment of unpaid subscription which
the Board of Directors of Belle Corporation decided to address its debt
problems. Ocier explained to Dichaves
that he needs the latter’s help in selling the Belle Shares to cover for the 75
per cent unpaid subscription. They
agreed to divide the task of looking for buyers of these Belle Shares with
Ocier looking for foreign buyers and Dichaves to look for local buyers. [ TSN,
January 7, 2002, p.18]
In a subsequent meeting
with Dichaves, the latter confirmed to Ocier that there was a good chance that
GSIS and SSS may be willing to buy the Belle shares as Dichaves had taken up
the matter already with FPres. Estrada and that Dichaves told him that the Former
President had already spoken to Carlos Arellano of SSS and Ding Pascual of GSIS
about the said matter. [Ibid, p. 19]
After a few weeks,
Dichaves called Ocier and told the latter that the transaction may be pushing
through but that a commission will have to be paid as a condition for the
purchase to push through. [Ibid. p. 21] As per Ocier’s testimony, Dichaves told him
that it was FPres. Estrada who imposed the condition. [Ibid. p. 26] Since the shares involved was approximately
600,000,000 to 650,000,000 and the price
of Belle at that time was about P3.00 per share, the total expected proceeds of
the sale was almost Two Billion Pesos and the commission involved would amount
to Two Hundred Million Pesos. [Ibid. p.
23]
Since the payment of the
commission was the only way for the transaction to push through, he was
constrained to agree to the payment of the commission. [Ibid. p. 36]
On September 6, 1999, at
a meeting with FPres. Estrada, Federico Pascual, President of GSIS was
instructed by the President to buy Belle Shares. [TSN, November 22, 2001, p. 20]
On October 6 1999, Carlos Arellano got a
call from FPres. Estrada and was told: “Gusto ko kayo ni Ding Pascual ay tignan
ninyo ang pagbili ng Belle Corporation sa stock market. [TSN, November 7, 2001,
p. 77] He thought that the words “tignan
ninyo” was an instruction for him. [Ibid. p. 80] After the instruction he asked the people in
the Investment Department of SSS to take a look and review the shares of Belle
as an investment item in the portfolio of SSS and also to find out to what
extent the SSS can further increase the SSS position in the said stock. [Ibid. p. 82]
He got a call from FPres. Estrada the
week after and he was asked to see the President at Malacanang. [Ibid. p. 95] At Malacañang he saw FPres. Estrada with
Jaime Dichaves. While he was there he
approached the President who stood up and took him aside and asked whether this
time, he had followed FPres. Estrada’s instructions to buy Belle shares. He replied: “Tinitignan pa po ng Investment
committee namin”; [Ibid. p. 97-104] When
he answered this to the President, he recalled that the reaction of the
President was to tell him “Bilisan ninyo na, bilisan.” [Ibid. p. 107] Upon
receiving these instructions, he still did not do anything for a few days
after. [Ibid. p. 115]
After several days, he
received another call from FPres. Estrada and the latter repeated “Bilisan mo,
bilisan ninyo na.” As far as he was
concerned, it was more serious than previous orders given to him. [Ibid. p. 124]
October 9, 1999 while Pascual was abroad,
he talked by phone to FPres. Estrada who asked him “bakit hindi ka pa bumibili
ng Belle” to which he replied “tatawag ho ako sa head office at papa-aralan ko.”
[TSN, November 22, 2001, pp. 56-57] He
felt that the President was more serious in his instructions in the sense that,
he was away and there was this telephone call and he felt that FPres. Estrada
was already agitated. [Ibid. p. 24] He
ordered the purchase of the Belle Shares on the same day. The President gave
him the instructions to buy and he also made instructions to his people to buy,
that was the chain of events. [Ibid. pp.
68; 74]
For the period October
13-21, 1999, GSIS bought 351,878,000
Belle Shares and paid P1,102,965,607.50 (Exh. N), and the Social Security System (SSS) bought 329,855,000 Belle
Shares for P744,612,450.00 on
October 21, 1999. [TSN, February 14, 2005, p.78]
That the purchase of Belle Shares by GSIS
and SSS was the result of the instructions of the FPres. Estrada is borne out
by the following circumstances:
1. The sequence of events beginning from the time Ocier agreed
to the payment of commission, to the instructions transmitted personally and by
telephone calls from FPres. Estrada to Pascual and Arellano, to the actual
purchase of Belle Shares by GSIS and SSS.
2.
The
haste with which GSIS and SSS bought Belle Shares. In the case of GSIS, from
October 9, 1999 (when the “agitated instructions” were given) to October 13,
1999 (the date when the first purchases were made) or a period of 4 days. In the case of SSS, a few days after October
13, 1999, ( the date when the “more serious” order was given by FPres. Estrada
to Arellano) to October 21, 1999 (the date when the purchases were made) or a
period of no more than 8 days. The instructions to buy originated from FPres.
Estrada and cascaded to Pascual and Arellano then to GSIS and SSS respectively.
3.
The obedience to FPres.
Estrada’s instructions despite Arellano’s reluctance to do so because he
believed that it was not the proper timing and the volume that was being
considered was too much and not yet the proper time. [TSN, November 7, 2001, p.
102] And in the case of Pascual, his
reluctance to buy because he was not
very comfortable with Belle because some people are of the opinion that Belle
Shares, because the corporation is involved in jai-alai and gambling, has
speculative flavor. [TSN,
November 22, 2001, Ibid. p. 20]
4. The
relationship of Pascual and Arellano to FPres. Estrada, who, being the
appointees and subordinates of FPres. Estrada, cannot refuse the instruction of
their superior.
5.
The
manner in which the instructions were given. In the case of Arellano, he felt
that the third order was more serious than previous orders given to him. [TSN,
November 7, 2001, p. 124] And, in the
case of Pascual, because he felt that FPres. Estrada was already agitated.
[TSN, November 22, 2001, p. 24]
We find no merit to the claim of the Defense that the
prosecution’s evidence itself shows that: (1) The transaction complained of was
perfectly valid, since accused FPres. Estrada did not direct, order or compel
SSS and GSIS to buy Belle Shares and (2) There is no proof that any commission
was paid to the accused. [Defense Memorandum, p. 192]
The denial of FPres. Estrada that he instructed
Pascual and Arellano to buy Belle Shares cannot overcome the straightforward
and direct testimony of Pascual and Arellano attesting to the persistent
instructions given by FPres. Estrada which is replete with details. Mere denial by an accused,
particularly when not properly corroborated or substantiated by clear and
convincing evidence, cannot prevail over the testimony of credible witnesses
who testify on affirmative matters. Denial, being in the nature of negative and
self-serving evidence, is seldom given weight in law. Positive and forthright declarations of
witnesses are often held to be worthier of credence than the self-serving denial of the accused. [People v.
Quilang, 312 SCRA, 328, 329]
Neither can We give more weight to the claim of the
Defense that the purchase of Belle Shares was a perfectly valid transaction
even as it pointed to the following portions of Arellano’s testimony:
1. That
the purchase of Belle Shares was a routine transaction in the regular course of
business, for SSS had previously purchased Belle Shares at profit;
2. What was told by FPres. Estrada to
Arellano was simply to initiate the acquisition of Belle Shares. How many
shares he was ordered to buy and at how much price per share, was never dealt
with in the phone conversation;
3. The above notwithstanding, Arellano
proceeded on his own volition with the acquisition of the 249 Million Belle
Shares.
4. The Decision to purchase was exclusively
his and the policy making body of SSS. [Ibid. 193-194, citing TSN, November 8,
2001, pp. 63, 73-74, 75-76]
for prefatory to these actions of the SSS were the
instructions given by FPres. Estrada to Arellano and the compliance with said
instructions by Arellano. While it is true that the SSS had previously granted
authority for additional investment by SSS in Belle Shares prior to and up to
1999, it was only in the 1999 purchases that there was an instruction coming
from FPres. Estrada through Arellano to purchase Belle Shares.
The evidence of the Defense show that the
1st Indorsement dated September 29, 1999 re: proposal to increase by
P450,000,000.00 the investment allocation for Belle to total P1,300,000,000.00
was not signed by Arellano (Exh. 242), contrary to the assertion of the
Defense. [In its formal offer of Evidence on p. 45, Defense claimed that Exh. 247
was executed by Arellano. Exh. 247 is the same as Exh. 242]
Neither was there any documentary
evidence submitted showing the approval by the Commission of the proposal
increasing by 450,000,000 the investment allocation for Belle to total P1,300,000,000.00.
Likewise, the testimony of Capulong -
that he examined and audited all the
acquisition papers and the various confirmation slips and official
receipts covering the acquisition and found them to be in order and hence, he
had no objection to, but on the contrary approved the payment of the said
acquisition; that as far as he was concerned, there was nothing illegal or irregular
or anomalous in the SSS purchase of Belle Shares in October 21, 1999 and that
it was a legal investment and a valid investment that is in the list of investment of SSS; that it is not an
irregular investment and it is said that it might be somewhat not ordinary in
the sense that in this case there was a call [Defense Memorandum, p.198, citing
TSN, November 14, 2001, p. 53], in fact corroborates Arellano’s statement that
indeed there was a call from FPres. Estrada instructing the purchase of Belle
Shares.
Moreover, Capulong, in his testimony,
stated that Belle Corporation Shares were no longer qualified stocks since
Belle had not declared dividends whether in cash or stock in 1997, 1998 and
1999. [TSN, February 14,
2005, p. 75]
He likewise testified that it was former
President and Chairman Carlos A. Arellano who directly gave the orders to the
brokers to purchase Belle Shares in behalf of the SSS and he (Capulong) had
nothing to do directly insofar as the acquisition was concerned since his
participation is merely limited to recommend the increase of the funding for
the acquisition of the shares. [TSN, February 11, 2002, p. 11]
Capulong further testified that for the
month of October, 1999, the SSS bought 389,855,000 shares with a value of
P1,031,126,400.00. [Ibid. p. 38] In his
subsequent testimony, Capulong testified that on October 21, 1999, the SSS
bought 249,679,000 shares at the value of P784,551,150.00 at an average price
of P3.14/share. [TSN, February 14, 2005, p. 78]
After October 21, 1999, Belle Shares was on a downward trend going down
to the P1.00 level by the year 2000. By October 23, 2001, it went below P1.00,
then it went down to 70 centavos by February 15, 2001. As of February 11, 2002,
it was being traded at 40 to 50 cents. [Ibid. pp. 92-93]
Capulong further testified that out of
the 249,679,000 shares which SSS bought on October 21, 1999 for
P784,551,150.00, a total of 96,366,000 shares were sold at an average selling
price of P1.7736/share resulting in a loss amounting to P127,464,710.00.
[TSN, February 18, 2002, pp. 94-95]
The Defense
argues that the reason why Arellano testified in the manner he did and executed
an affidavit implicating FPres. Estrada in the instant plunder case
notwithstanding that there was nothing irregular, illegal or anomalous in the
October 21, 1999 acquisition of Belle Shares was because his testimonies and
affidavit are his last ditch effort to exculpate himself from possible plunder
charges where he may be detained without bail considering that plunder is a
capital offense. [Defense Memorandum, p. 197]
This argument of the
Defense are mere allegations and extracted from FPres. Estrada’s testimony that
Arellano called him up and explained the circumstances behind Arellano’s
execution of his Affidavit which are however, uncorroborated.
Neither do we find that
the presence of the instruction from FPres. Estrada is negated by the argument
of the Defense that the acquisition by GSIS of Belle Shares, was in accordance
with investment policy and rules.
The Defense sought to
establish that the Belle Shares were qualified under GSIS policy and
charter and GSIS may by itself and in
accordance with its rules, purchase Belle Shares without the need of any order
or compulsion from anybody as shown by the testimony of Pascual, the President
of GSIS when he admitted that even way back in 1993, GSIS had been purchasing
or dealing with Belle Shares and had already made profits at the extent of
around P145,000,000.00 since 1993 up to the present prior to his coming in as
the new General Manager of GSIS. [TSN,
November 22, 2001, pp. 61 to 62] That
the purchase was in accordance with the GSIS policy was established by
Pascual’s testimony that the trading department under the Corporate Finance
Group investigated and made further inquiries in connection with the shares and
concluded that there would be no violation that could have been committed by
GSIS in the purchase of the shares. [TSN,
December 3, 2001, pp. 14 and 15] Pascual
further testified that the average price of P3.14 per share was the worth of
the shares around the time it was purchased [TSN, November 22, 2001, pp. 89-90]
and it was reported to him by his people that the reason why they bought so
much was because there was a history of profitability and that they already had
a P1,000,000,000.00 turnover plus and he felt that it was “a good buying
afterwards.” (sic) [TSN, November 28, 2001, p. 55]
Nowhere in the argument of the Defense
does it establish the absence of the instruction of FPres. Estrada to Pascual,
other than the self-serving denial of FPres. Estrada.
Moreover, as Pascual testified, the GSIS
profits in 1999 did not come from Belle Shares. Furthermore, the fact that GSIS
made profits to the extent of around P145,000,000.00 since 1993 did not mean that
it made profits from the Belle Shares purchased in 1999. As testified by Pascual, the actual profit of
the GSIS in 1999 did not come from Belle Shares but from other stocks and there
was no contribution to the profit of GSIS from the Belle Shares acquisition
because up to the present they are still holding on to the Belle Shares. [TSN,
November 22, 2001, p. 81] Even the
evidence of the Defense shows that as of
December 29, 2000, the value of Belle Shares had gone down to
P0.69/share from the average purchase price of P3.14/share and an allowance for
probable loss of P374,052,750.00 had been set up (Exh. 250, J-12).
FPres. Estrada’s testimony that he called
Pascual to inquire about delayed GSIS benefits is negated by the fact that
after the call to Pascual, the latter gave instructions to buy Belle
Shares. If benefits were being delayed,
why would GSIS spend billions of pesos to buy Belle Shares instead of setting
aside these monies to avoid delay in GSIS benefits?
Defense argued that assuming arguendo
that there was an instruction from FPres. Estrada for such purchase, such
instruction was not too compelling or irresistible to directly cause the
execution of the purchase suggestion and that such instruction was immaterial
because the GSIS Board which approved the transaction did not receive the
alleged instruction of the President and that in the same vein, the GSIS
decided on the purchase independently, free from any compulsion by an outsider
as the instruction given by Pascual was to the effect that a study be conducted
and if the Belle Shares are qualified, to buy within the range of their
authority. [Defense Memorandum, pp.
205-206]
Pascual’s testimony that
when he talked to FPres. Estrada and the latter asked him why he had not bought
Belle Shares in an agitated tone; that he did not mention the instruction of FPres.
Estrada to others because the instruction was specific to him; that on October
9, 1999 after his telephone conversation with FPres. Estrada, he gave the
instruction to GSIS to buy Belle Shares should be afforded stronger weight and
more probative value than the arguments of the Defense. As stated earlier, the Prosecution has
established that it was the instructions of FPres. Estrada that triggered the
instructions of Pascual and Arellano to GSIS and SSS respectively which caused
these agencies, in turn to follow the usual procedures established for the
purchase of the shares which finally culminated in the purchase of the Belle
Shares by GSIS and SSS.
As to Pascual’s testimony that it was
unusual for FPres. Estrada to call him for the purchase of a (sic) particular
shares, the Defense pointed out that as per admission of Pascual, what he meant
by unusual was that FPres. Estrada called him when he was out of the
country. Defense pointed out however,
that as testified by FPres. Estrada, the latter did not know that Pascual was
out of the country when he called. [Ibid. p. 209] Defense pointed out that, by Pascual’s
admission, the GSIS Board was not pressured into finding that the Belle Shares
were okay, above board, and that they were not pressured by anybody into
concluding the purchase. [Ibid. p. 214, citing TSN, December 3, 2001, p. 93]
We fail to see how the admission of
Pascual that it was unusual for FPres. Estrada to call him to inquire about why
GSIS had not purchased Belle Shares in an agitated tone and the statement of FPres.
Estrada that he did not know that Pascual was out of the country at the time he
called Pascual could lead to the conclusion that the GSIS Board was not
pressured into finding that the Belle Shares were “okay,” “above board” and
that they were not pressured by anybody into concluding the purchase. The issue
was not whether the GSIS Board was pressured into finding that the Belle Shares
purchase was “okay” or “above board,” but whether FPres. Estrada pressured
Pascual into ordering GSIS to buy Belle Shares.
The testimonies of defense witnesses, Justice
Hermogenes D. Concepcion, Jr., the former Chairman of GSIS, and Reynaldo
Palmiery, Executive Vice-President of GSIS, did not disprove that FPres.
Estrada gave instructions to Pascual for GSIS to buy Belle Shares since, as
admitted by them, they were not aware of such instructions. Nowhere in the
testimony of Pascual did he state that he informed these people of the
instructions of FPres. Estrada because, as stated by Pascual, the instructions
were specific to him so he didn’t want to involve his management anymore. [TSN,
November 28, 2001, pp. 9- 10]
The P189,700,000.00 Check No.
6000159271 payable to cash, drawn on International Exchange Bank with Eastern
Securities Corporation as drawer [Exh.
R-R-4]
After the purchase by GSIS and SSS of the
Belle Shares, Ocier caused the preparation of a check by Eastern Securities
Development Corporation in the amount of P189,700,000.00 representing the
profit commission to be paid from the sale. [TSN, January 14, 2002, p. 33-36]
Ocier identified International
Exchange Bank Check No. 6000159271 dated November 5, 1999, payable to cash in the amount of
P189,700,000.00 with Eastern Securities Corporation as Drawer. Ocier testified that the check was prepared so
that he can hand carry and deliver it to Dichaves as per their agreement when
he agreed to pay P 200,000,000.00 commission. [TSN, January 7, 2002, p. 49] When asked who was supposed to get the
commission, Ocier answered that according to Jaime Dichaves, President Estrada
was supposed to get the commission. [Ibid.
p. 55]
Ocier testified that he delivered the
check to the residence of Dichaves in No. 19 Corinthian Gardens,
On cross-examination,
Ocier admitted that FPres. Estrada was not present when he had his conversation
with Dichaves on the Belle shares on July 20, 1999. [TSN, January 14, 2002, pp. 20-29] Neither did he talk to FPres. Estrada after
the check for P189,700,000.00 (Exh. R) was issued and cleared nor did he
inquire from FPres. Estrada whether he received or was credited in any of his
account with the amount stated in the check. [Ibid. pp. 39-40] Ocier likewise testified that he did not have
the opportunity to discuss the profit commission, nor the receipt of the profit
commission nor the Velarde account with FPres. Estrada despite the fact that he
had constant meetings with FPres. Estrada. [Ibid. p. 60-61]
When Ocier was asked if
he could say that Dichaves was instructed by FPres. Estrada regarding the
profit commission, Ocier answered that he trusts his cousin Dichaves and
whatever the latter tells him he would normally believe. Ocier also testified
that the totality of what he stated in his affidavit about the instruction, or
the representation made by Dichaves was
not corroborated or confirmed by FPres. Estrada or anybody else representing
him because it was just between him and Dichaves. [Ibid. pp. 39-45]
Citing Ocier’s
testimony, Defense argues that such testimony on the subject sales and
commission are purely hearsay and does not bind FPres. Estrada. What is clear on the record is that the
commission went to Dichaves as gleaned from Ocier’s testimony. [Defense
Memorandum, p. 221-222]
In an attempt to establish that there was
no evidence that FPres. Estrada received any percentage or commission from the
sale of Belle Shares, the Defense pointed out that Capulong’s testimony
indicated that while there was a broker’s commission, which was paid to brokers
like Abacus Securities Corporation. [Defense
Memorandum, pp. 215-216, citing TSN, February 11, 2002, pp. 13-16] In the case of the 389,855,000 Belle Shares
bought by SSS for P1,031,126,400.00, the payments went from SSS to the brokers,
the buying brokers. [TSN, February 11, 2002, p. 38[
The Court finds that International
Exchange Bank Check No. 6000159271 dated November 5, 1999, payable to cash in the amount of
P189,700,000.00 with Eastern Securities Corporation as Drawer (Exh. R), was
paid as commission in consideration of the purchase of Belle Shares by SSS and
GSIS. While the testimony of Ocier to
the effect that Dichaves told him that it was FPres. Estrada who imposed the
condition for the payment of commission is hearsay insofar as FPres. Estrada is
concerned, the said testimony is admissible as proof that such statement was
made by Dichaves to Ocier. Testimony of
what one heard a party say is not necessarily hearsay. It is admissible
in evidence, not to show that the statement was true, but that it was in fact
made. If credible, it may form part of the circumstantial evidence
necessary to convict the accused. [Bon
vs. People, 419 SCRA 103]
As regards the argument that Capulong’s testimony indicated that while
there was a broker’s commission, this was paid to brokers such as Abacus
Securities Corporation and that the purchase price of P 1,031,126,400.00 for
389,855,000 Belle Shares went from SSS to the buying brokers, again, we find
this argument of the Defense to be unavailing. The issue is not whether FPres.
Estrada received Broker’s commission or received the payment from SSS, but
whether he received the commission mentioned by Dichaves to Ocier as
consideration for the purchase of Belle Shares by GSIS and SSS.
Having found that a commission was paid in consideration of the purchase
of Belle Shares by SSS and GSIS, the next issue that this Court must determine
is whether the commission went to FPres. Estrada or Dichaves.
The paper
trail for International Exchange Bank Check No. 6000159271
First: Far East Bank
and Trust Co. (Cubao-Araneta Branch)
In
tracking the check (Exh. R), Prosecution presented Ms. Yolanda de Leon, (De Leon), Senior
Manager of BPI (Cubao-Araneta Branch)
formerly Far East Bank and Trust Co. [BPI merged with Far East Bank sometime in
2000] De Leon testified that Dichaves
was one of the valued clients of the Bank and that Jaime Dichaves and Abby
Dichavez had joint current and savings
accounts with then Far East Bank and Trust Company in 1999. The Current Account
had the No. 0007-05558-7 and the Savings Account had the No. 0107-38639-9 (C/A
No. 0007-05558-7 and S/A No. 0107-38639-9). [TSN, February 4, 2002, pp. 23-24;
(Exhs. BB and Z)] She identified the
microfilm copy of International Exchange
Bank Check No. 6000159271 [Ibid. p. 39-41; Exh. DD] dated November 5, 1999
in the amount of P189,700,000.00 as the check that was deposited to the savings
account of Dichaves on November 5, 1999 as evidenced by the microfilm of the
deposit slip [Ibid. pp. 42-44; Exh. EE] and the bank statement of account for
S/A No. 0107-38639-9 dated November 30, 1999. [Ibid. pp. 48-49; Exh. FF, FF-1]
She testified that on November 9, 1999, the amount of P189,700,000.00
was auto- transferred from S/A
No.0107-38639-9 to C/A No.0007-05558-7 as appearing in the Statement of Accounts
for S/A No. 0107-38639-9 and C/A No. 0007-05558-7. [
On
cross-examination, De
The Court
finds that International Exchange Bank
Check No. 6000159271 dated November
5, 1999 was deposited to Far East Bank and Trust Co. S/A No. 0107-38639-9
of Jaime Dichaves and auto-transferred to C/A No.0007-05558-7 of Jaime Dichaves
who drew from the latter account, Far
East Bank and Trust Co. Check No. 3165579 for
P189,700,000.00.
Second: EPCIB Greenhills-Ortigas Branch to EPCIB
Binondo Branch S/A 0160-62501-5 with the Account Name Jose Velarde
The prosecution’s
evidence on the deposit of Far East Bank
Araneta Check No. 3165579 which was the subject of an inter-bank deposit
from EPCIB Greenhills Ortigas Branch to EPCIB Binondo Branch Account No.
0160-62501-5 in the name of Jose Velarde consisted in the testimony of Ms.
Glyzelyn Bejec, the Teller who processed the Deposit Receipt marked as Exhibit
I5. She testified that as of
November 8, 1999, she was assigned to the EPCI Bank Greenhills Ortigas Branch
as Customer Service Assistant Teller with Teller Identification No. 8. Her
basis for indicating the number “0160-62501-5” in the Deposit Receipt was the
Account Information Slip which is filled in by the depositor or the
representative of the depositor. [TSN, May 6, 2002, pp. 46-47; 61]
After she was given the
Account Information Slip together with the four checks, she first verified the
face of the check as to the date, the amount in words and figures, after which
she stamped the non-negotiable endorsement at the back of each check, and also,
she wrote down the account number indicated on the Account Information Slip
given to her. She wrote down the account
no. 0160-62501-5 at the dorsal portion of the check after which she deposited
the checks to the Account No. indicated in the Account Information Slip. [Ibid.
p. 65; 68]
She explained that the deposit process
involved first, encoding the account number given in the Account Information
Slip, after which she swiped each check on the check reader and encoded the
amount on each check and after that a deposit receipt was generated. After she had encoded the account number and
the amounts of the four (4) checks that she processed for deposit the account
name that reflected in the computer was “Jose Velarde.” [Ibid. p. 69-70]
The checks that she processed for deposit
were forwarded to their distributing for safekeeping and microfilming the next
day. When she was shown the certified
copy of Far East Bank Check No. 3165579
in the amount of P189,700,000.00 from the Philippine Clearing House
Corporation, she testified that this was the same check she processed and she
identified the dorsal portion where she wrote Account No. 160-625-015
(sic). Her other means of identifying
the check was her Teller ID no.8 which appears at the check (Exh U4-1) and she identified the
account holder of the check as Jaime C. Dichaves or Abe (sic) C. Dichaves and
she attested that the check is payable to cash.
She testified that the Bank accepts checks even if not endorsed by the
depositor she accepted the check even without endorsement because it was given
to her by the Branch Manger for deposit. [Ibid. p. 72-84]
On cross-examination she testified that
she threw away the Account Information Slip because the deposit receipt had
been generated or the transaction has been validated in the deposit receipt.
[Ibid, p. 89]
To corroborate the testimony of Ms.
Bejec, the prosecution presented Ms. Teresa Barcelona, the Branch Manager of
the EPCIB Greenhills-Ortigas Branch during the period November, 1999. She identified inter-bank deposit receipt
dated 8 November 1999 which was previously marked as Exh. I5 issued
by the EPCIB Greenhills-Ortigas Branch for deposit to account number
0160-62501-5 with the account name Jose Velarde. The transaction is an
inter-bank deposit of four (4) checks to the account of Jose Velarde maintained
at the Binondo Branch. [TSN, May 15, 2002, p. 80] The total amount of the four (4) checks is
P263,292,303.65 of which one check is issued by Far East Bank and Trust Co. Araneta Branch with Check No. 3165579
amounting to P189,700,000.00. [Ibid. p.
81; Exh. U4-1]
The person who
transacted the inter-bank deposit with the EPCIB Greenhills Ortigas Branch was
Ms. Baby Ortaliza who transacted personally with the witness and it was Ms.
Baby Ortaliza who received the third copy of the deposit receipt for the
account holder. [Ibid. p. 82] This transaction was processed by Teller Glezelyn
Bejec as her Teller ID appears in the deposit receipt. [
The Defense argued that
Bejec stated that the checks were handed to her by the Branch Manager, Teresa
Barcelona and not by the person who made the deposit, and that the depositor
did not appear before her. Not one of
the bank personnel or any other witness presented by the prosecution testified
that FPres. Estrada had any participation in the opening of Current Account
No.000110-525495-4 (sic) and Savings Account No. 0160-62501-5 in the name of
Jose Velarde, nor its closing. Not one of the prosecution witnesses testified
as to the source of the funds deposited in the said accounts. Nor was there any
witness who could identify any of the persons who issued the checks deposited
under the said account and under what circumstances the same were issued. In
short, there is no proof that FPres. Estrada “willfully, unlawfully and
criminally amassed, accumulated and acquired ill-gotten wealth in the amount of
P 3.2 Million (sic).” Neither is there proof that this money came from
“commissions, gifts, percentages, kickbacks or any form of pecuniary benefits
given to him” as the source of said money have not been identified or
traced. There is no evidence to show that
he had enriched himself at the expense of the Filipino people. [Defense Memorandum, pp. 242-243]
At any rate, Defense argues that the
documents submitted as exhibits by the prosecution only tend to prove what
checks were deposited to the said Account No.0160-62501-5 of Equitable PCI Bank
in the name of Jose Velarde. [Ibid. p. 242]
The Court finds that the Far East Bank and Trust Co. Araneta
Branch Check No. 3165579 amounting
to P189,700,000.00 drawn by Dichaves was deposited to EPCIB S/A No.
0160-62501-5 account of Jose Velarde as part of the deposit to said account
totaling P263,292,303.65 (Exh. I5; U4-1; 127-L).
The link
between FPres. Estrada and the Jose Velarde Account
In discharging its burden of proof to
establish that the Jose Velarde Account belong to FPres. Estrada, the prosecution
relied on the following:
1. The testimony of Clarissa Ocampo that
she saw Fpres. Estrada signed “Jose Velarde” on the Debit-Credit instruction
for S/A 0160-62501-5 (Exh. E5);
2. The admission of FPres. Estrada [TSN,
May 24, 2006, p. 23] that he signed “Jose Velarde” on Exh. E5;
3. The many bank transactions of Baby
Ortaliza involving the personal accounts of FPres. Estrada and his family, the
personal account of Loi Estrada and the Jose Velarde Account;
4. The use of the Jose Velarde Current
Account for the purchase of the
5. The funding that the Jose Velarde Account
received from the Urban Bank Special Trust Account of FPres. Estrada’s son,
Jose Victor Ejercito; and
6. The customary signing of FPres. Estrada
as “Jose.”
The signatures of FPres. Estrada as
“Jose Velarde” in the Investment Management Agreement (IMA), Signature Cards,
Investment Guidelines, Directional Letters, and Debit-Credit Authority for EPCIB
CA/SA 0160-62501-5 of Jose Velarde
Clarissa
Ocampo testified that after explaining the documents being presented for his
signature, she and Atty. Curato saw FPres. Estrada signed as “Jose Velarde” on
the three (3) copies of the Investment Management Agreement (IMA) [Exh. W4
to Y4 ; TSN
November 13, 2002, pp. 70 -73], two (2) signature cards (Exh. Z4;
A5) which he signed
three (3) times [TSN, November 13, 2002, pp. 78-80], one (1) copy of the
Investment Guidelines (Exh. B5; Ibid. pp. 82-84), two (2) copies of
the Directional Letters (Exh. C5 to D5; Ibid.
pp. 87-89), and one (1) copy of the Debit-Credit Authority (Exh. E5).
[Ibid. pp. 92-93] Her testimony
regarding the Debit-Credit Authority in particular was as follows:
OMB. MARCELO
Q After
these two exhibits marked as Exhibit C to the 5th power and D to the
5th power were signed by the former President and handed by you to
Atty. Curato what happened next?
A I
was preparing to go and then I recalled that there was an envelope that was
given to me by the banking side which contained the funding medium and so I
looked at it, I pulled out the document inside the envelope, I read it and then
I gave it to the President for signing.
Q After giving it to the President what
happened next?
A Actually,
I explained to him that the letter of instruction which is a debit/credit authority,
I told him that the banking side gave it to me which authorizes the bank to
actually debit or draw 500 Million from his account so I was pointing at the
account number in the debit/credit authority so debit his account draw 500
Million and credit the same amount to trust for funding of his loan to Wellex
sir.
Q What was his reaction to your
explanation?
A He was nodding his head sir.
Q After he nodded his head what happened?
A He
signed the document and I saw him signed.
OMB. MARCELO
Q What
was the signature affixed by the former President?
A He signed as Jose Velarde.
Q After
the former President signed this document as Jose Velarde what happened, if
any?
A I
got the document and then I looked at it and I passed it on to Atty. Curato.” [TSN, November 13, 2002, pp. 92-93]
On
May 24, 2006, FPres. Estrada testified as follows:
Q Ms. Ocampo
and Atty. Curato testified before this court that you signed as Jose Velarde in
the documents that you have just identified awhile ago and you signed as Jose
Velarde, what can you say as to that testimony?
A THAT IS
TRUE. “PINIRMAHAN KO PO IYAN DAHIL PO SA PAKIUSAP NI MR. JAIME DE CHAVES (SIC)
NA OKAY NA RAW PO YONG INTERNAL ARRANGEMENT SA BANGKO AT
William Gatchalian is a big
businessman. isang malaking negosyante at siya po ay may ari ng Wellex group of
companies at siya rin po ay isa sa tumulong sa aming partido noong nakaraang
1998 presidential election. [Ibid, p. 25]
Q Now, you were requested by Mr. Jaime de
Chaves (sic) to make it appear that you own the Jose Velarde account and that
there was an internal arrangement between
you and Mr. de Chaves (sic) I ask you now Mr. President, when did you agree to
such request and arrangement?
A Hindi lang po dahil doon sa internal
arrangement. Hindi lang po dahil gusto kong tulungan si Mr. William Gatchalian
kundi higit po sa lahat ay nakita ko ang kapakanan noong mahigit na tatlong
libong (3000) empleyado na kung sakaling hindi mapapautang si Mr. William
Gatchalian, maaring magsara ang kanyang mga kumpanya at yong mga taong, mahigit
tatlong libong (3,000) empleyado kasama na yong kanilang mga pamilya ay
mawawalan ng trabaho. AT INISIP KO RING
NA WALA NAMING (SIC) GOVERNMENT FUNDS NA INVOLVE KAYA HINDI NA
In
the Debit-Credit Authority signed by FPres. Estrada as Jose Velarde for EPCIB
S/A No. 0160-62501-5, the following words expressly appear:
. . . my SA/CA No.0160-62501-5 maintained with your branch in the amount
of P500,000,000.00 and credit my Trust Account No. 101-78056-1 representing my
initial contribution (Exh. E5-3). [Emphasis Supplied]
Lucena “Baby” Ortaliza and the bank
accounts of FPres. Estrada and the Jose Velarde Account
To establish the close relationship and
trust of FPres. Estrada and his family on Lucena “Baby” Ortaliza, the prosecution
presented REMEDIOS AXALAN AGUILA, Personnel officer of the Office of the Vice-
President (OVP).
She testified that Ortaliza was appointed
VP Staff Officer II from January 2, 1996 to June 30, 1998 by FPres. Estrada.
Being in the immediate staff of the Vice-President, she has the trust and
confidence of the Vice-President and she can report anywhere, anytime as may be
directed by the Vice-President. [TSN, May 22, 2002, pp. 21-24]
Likewise, the Prosecution presented Linda
P. Sison, Presidential Officer VI, Chief Personnel Data Bank, Office of the
President. She testified that Ortaliza
was employed in the office of the President on July 1, 1998 and appointed
Presidential Staff Officer VI by FPres. Estrada. She was assigned to the internal house affairs
office which normally attends to the needs of the President and members of the
family. She resigned effective September
30, 2000 as “Private Secretary VI” in a letter of resignation dated October 4,
2000. [Ibid. pp. 47-48]
To establish that Baby Ortaliza
transacted for the bank accounts of FPres. Estrada and his family the
Prosecution presented Salvador Serrano, Vice-President, Centralized Operations
and Control Division of Security Banking Corporation. He identified the Investment Savings Account
Agreement of FPres. Estrada [Exh. C14-C14-8] in the
amount of P10,000,000.00 with Security Bank San Juan Branch where, above the
typewritten name “Joseph E. Estrada” under the word “Conforme” appears the
signature of Baby Ortaliza and he was told by the New Accounts Clerk of the San
Juan Branch that Baby Ortaliza is the representative of FPres. Estrada. [TSN,
May 8, 2002, pp. 79-81; 87-90; 128-129]
The witness also identified the purchase
of T-Bills by FPres. Estrada evidenced by Confirmation Sale No. 81046 (Exh. C14-9
to C14-16) value date April 10, 1997 where there appears the
signature of Baby Ortaliza above TS No. 96848. [TSN, May 8, 2002, p. 114]
The Prosecution also presented Ms. Pamela
Moran who testified that Ms. Ortaliza was the only one person transacting the
accounts of FPres. Estrada when she was
in charge of the New Accounts Section of the Security Bank San Juan Branch.
[TSN, May 15, 2002, p. 146; pp.149-152]
The Prosecution further presented Patrick
Dee Cheng of Citibank who testified that in the Hold-All-Mail Agreement signed
by Ms. Luisa P. Ejercito, her designated representative was Ms. Lucena “Baby”
Ortaliza. [TSN, October 7, 2002; pp.
80-83; Exhs. B11; C11 and sub-markings]
The Prosecution presented Ms. Marie Rose
Ancheta Claudio who was Branch Manager of Urban Bank Greenhills Branch from
1998. [TSN, March 26, 2003, p. 92] She
identified the Letter of Authority dated November 23, 1999 addressed to Urban
Bank Greenhills Branch (Exh. I19) for issuance of three (3)
Managers’ Checks in the amounts of P42,716,554.22, P10,875,749.43 and P 54,161,496.52, where the words “Received
By: Baby Ortaliza” appeared. As per the
witness, however, it was not Baby Ortaliza who received the check as she
herself gave the Manager’s Checks directly to the client, Joseph Victor G.
Ejercito. [TSN, March 26, 2003, p. 168]
Having presented evidence that Baby
Ortaliza transacted for FPres. Estrada and family with the Banks where FPres.
Estrada and Family had accounts, the prosecution then presented evidence of the
transactions by Ortaliza in relation to the Jose Velarde Account to establish
that FPres. Estrada owns the Jose Velarde accounts.
Thus, the prosecution presented Teresa A.
Barcelona who testified that Baby Ortaliza transacted with her personally for
the deposit of P 143,000,000.00 (Exh. M5 and submarkings) into the
Jose Velarde S/A No. 0160- 62501-5 account and it was Baby Ortaliza who
received the copy of the deposit receipt for the account holder. [TSN, May 15,
2002, pp. 76-80]
Likewise, Baby Ortaliza transacted with
her personally for the deposit of the amount of P263,292,303.65 [Exh. I5
and submarkings] to the Jose Velarde S/A 0160-62501-5 account and it was Baby
Ortaliza who received the copy of the deposit receipt for the account holder. [TSN,
May 15, 2002, pp. 80-82] Baby Ortaliza
also transacted with her for the deposit of the amount of P40,000,000.00 (Exh.
N5 and submarkings) to the Jose Velarde S/A 0160-62501-5 account and
it was Baby Ortaliza who received the copy of the deposit receipt for the
account holder. [TSN, May 15, 2002, pp. 83-85] Baby Ortaliza transacted with her for the
deposit of P163,500,000.00 (Exh.Q5 and submarkings) to the Jose
Velarde S/A 0160-62501-5 account and it was Baby Ortaliza who received the copy
intended for the account holder. [TSN,
May 15, 2002, pp. 89-92]
The prosecution further presented Melissa
P. Pascual former bank Teller of EPCIB Virra Mall Branch who testified that she
personally processed various checks (Exhs. V15; W15; X15;
Y15; A16, inclusive of submarkings) deposited by Ms.
Ortaliza to the Jose Velarde S/A 0160-62501-5.
She was sure it was Baby Ortaliza who deposited
these checks because their branch is so small that everytime she comes to their
branch, her voice is too loud so she would catch her attention. She would see Ortaliza give the checks to her
officer which the officer would give to her for validation, for processing. [TSN,
December 9, 2002, pp. 21-23; 35; 37-39]
The
purchase of the “
The prosecution presented evidence to
show that the purchase of the Boracay Mansion was initiated by a check No.
0110-714951 dated October 5, 1999 issued by Jose Velarde from his EPCIB C/A No.
0110-25495-4 in the amount of P 142,000,000.00 payable to Jose Luis J. Yulo
(hereafter Yulo) (Exh. G16) who deposited the same to his BPI C/A No.
0383-0748-27 which was a joint account with Ma. Carmen L. Yulo. [TSN, December 9, 2002, p. 114-125; Exh. F16] Subsequently, on October 8, 1999, Yulo issued BPI Check No. 0002129 (Exh. U16; T16) from his BPI Current Account which was
deposited to the account of St. Peter
Holdings Corporation which, in turn, the latter used to buy three Managers’
Checks, one for P86,766,960.00 payable to Vicente AS Madrigal and/or Gerardo
Madrigal as sellers of the Boracay Property (Exh. V16; W16); another for P53,931,535.60 payable to Mercedes A. Reyes (broker)
(Exh. X16) and the third for P1,301,504.40 payable to Vicente
AS Madrigal and/or Gerardo AS Madrigal for payment of documentary stamps (Exh. Y16).
[TSN December 16, 2002, pp. 29-51] To establish that the Boracay Property was,
in reality, owned by FPres. Estrada, Prosecution presented a tag in the carpet
indicating the name: “Pres. J. Estrada” (Exh. H19-H-2)
[TSN, March 19, 2003]; a “Locator Slip” which bears the words “Approved By;
MS.LAARNI N. ENRIQUEZ,” (Exh. H19) a school correspondence for FPres. Estrada’s child
with Laarni Enriquez, namely: Ejercito, Ma. Jerika Larize (Exh. H19-a), and portion of the testimony of Chavit Singson where he mentioned that FPres.
Estrada’s new house in New Manila was called Boracay. [TSN, July 24, 2002, pp.
129-134]
However, Jose Luis Yulo, whom the prosecution portrayed as the dummy of
FPres. Estrada in the purchase of the
The funding
of the Jose Velarde Account from the Urban Bank Account of Jose Victor Ejercito
The prosecution presented Marie Rose
Ancheta Claudio who testified that JV Ejercito was the owner of Special Account
No. (SPAN) 858 with Urban Bank pursuant to a Trust Agreement executed between
JV Ejercito and Urban Bank Trust Dept. [TSN, March 26,
2003, pp. 98-99] Ma. Aileen C. Tiongson testified that Urban Bank
Manager’s Check No. 43222 (Exh. W19) for P75, 000,000.00 came from a pre-terminated placement of SPAN 858. [TSN, April 2,
2003, pp. 20-21] This
Urban Bank Manager’s Check No. 43222 was subsequently replaced by four (4)
Manager’s Checks Nos. 39975, 39976, 39977 and 39978 (Exhs. B 15-2, B15-4,
B15-6 and B15-8) in
the respective amounts of P70,000,000, P2,000,000.00, P2,000,000.00 and
P1,000,000.00 (Exhs. B15-2-9).
Subsequently, on January 24, 2000, these
four (4) checks were deposited to EPCIB S/A No. 0160-62501-5 of Jose Velarde (Exh. B 15;
Exh. 127-N).
Likewise, as mentioned earlier, three (3)
Urban Bank Manager’s Checks for the amounts of P10,875,749.43, P42,716,554.22
and P54,161,496.52 (Exh. I5-17, I5-18 and O5-2), received by JV Ejercito were deposited to EPCIB S/A
No. 0160-62501-5 of Jose Velarde (Exh. I5).
Prosecution’s
Evidence to show that it was customary for FPres. Estrada to sign as “Jose”
Prosecution presented Marianito M.
Dimaandal who identified various official documents which showed the signature
of FPres. Estrada as reading “Jose” instead of “Joseph” (Exhs. X19 to R20 ). [TSN
March 31, 2003, pp.40-47]
Based on the forgoing testimonial and
documentary evidence, it is the contention of the Prosecution that it has
established that FPres. Estrada is the real and beneficial owner of EPCIB
Savings Account No. 0160-62501-5 and Current Account No. 0110-25495-4 in the
name of Jose Velarde.
The theory of the defense on the Jose
Velarde Account
In attempting to prove that the Jose
Velarde account was owned by Jaime Dichaves and not by FPres. Estrada, the defense
presented Romuald Dy Tang and Beatriz Bagsit as their witnesses in addition to FPres.
Estrada.
Romuald
Dy Tang testified that in 1999, he was connected with EPCI Bank as its SVP and
Treasurer. The Chairman, Mr. George L.
Go referred Mr. Dichaves to him because Go told him that Dichaves wanted to
open a current account under an alias instead of his name. Mr. Dichaves also called him up and told him
the same. He knows Mr. Dichaves because
the wife of Jaime Dichaves is the sister of his sister-in-law. In effect, the
wife of his brother and Jaime’s wife are sisters. What he knows is Dichaves has a lot of
business, substantial business and one of his major businesses is plaster
glass. [TSN, May 4, 2005, pp.11,15, 17, 18]
When he was called by
Dichaves over the phone, the latter told him that Mr. Go referred him to Dy
Tang to open an alias account for him. Based on that, Dy Tang told Dichaves to
prepare a letter for records indicating his intention and Dichaves sent him a
letter saying that he is opening an account under the name Jose Velarde and
everything should be so…for safekeeping. [Ibid. p. 20] Dy Tang identified the letter dated August
25, 1999(Exh. 127 to 127 B-1). [Ibid. pp. 20-21] The letter was given to him on the day
Dichaves went to his office to get the signature cards. [
In his sworn statement with the Ombudsman
on March 23, 2001 (Exh. 327-327-C), Dy Tang stated that he received a letter
from Dichaves advising them that all transaction for the Jose Velarde account
should be coursed through him. He
instructed Mr. Ceferino Ang, Vice President and Manager of Binondo Branch to
cause the opening of the account. He
knows Mr. Dichaves personally because he was referred by Mr. George Go to him
and because he is the brother-in-law of Dy Tang’s brother. He went to the office to pick up the forms
for the opening of the account sometime in late August 1999. Mr. Jaime Dichaves opened the account but Dy Tang does not know if he opened it for
himself or another person. He gave
the signature cards for Dichaves to fill up. The accomplished signature cards were given to him by Mr. Go. He was not present when the depositor affixed
his specimen signature in the said signature card as it was given to him
accomplished by Mr. Go.
Beatriz L. Bagsit came
into Equitable Bank as head of Pacific Star branch with rank of AVP and when
they acquired PCI Bank in 1999, she was promoted to 1st VP and the
division head who handled the
She retired from the
bank because of politics in the bank and the Jose Velarde case was coming
up. She was the one handling the Jose
Velarde account which was being handled also by Mr. Jaime Dichaves. [Ibid. p.
65] The Jose Velarde account started at
Binondo Branch. It was opened there and
when her superiors transferred to
There is no Jose Velarde who owns an
account with their bank. Her basis for
saying that Jose Velarde account belongs to Mr. Jaime Dichaves is that there
was a letter that was given to her that came from Mr. Dichaves when the account
was opened in Binondo. When the account was opened in Binondo, she was not
handling the management of the same. The
Jose Velarde account was never transferred to
Based on the letter (Exh. 127) it would
appear that the Jose Velarde account belonged to Jaime Dichaves because it was
Mr. Jaime Dichaves who issued the letter stating that all banking transaction
of Jose Velarde should be coursed to him.
The letter was shown to her by Mr. Dy Tang in November, 1999. She does not remember the exact date when she
was told by Dy Tang to handle the account of Mr. Dichaves in the name Jose
Velarde. She was first informed about it
in Dy Tang’s office and after that there was a time when Dichaves went to Dy
Tang’s office and that was the time she was introduced to Dichaves. She first met Mr. Dichaves in January, 2000. After she was introduced to Dichaves, there
were times when he would call her for a transaction and there were times he
went to her office. Sometimes Dichaves
will tell her that he will be sending somebody to get the MC which he wants her
to prepare and sometimes he would ask for the balance. [Ibid, pp. 72-96] Mr. Dichaves came to her office twice or
thrice only. One is when he visited Mr.
Dy Tang, the other one is when he just passed by, just to check the account of
Jose Velarde and he gave her instruction that he will be sending representative
to prepare an MC for him that was after the February 4, 2000 transaction.
[TSN, April 18, 2005, p. 59]
She does not know if Dichaves has an
account in her area, she thinks there is none but she does not know with other
branches. The records she had access to
regarding the Jose Velarde Account were the signature card and the copy of the
letter. The name “Dichaves” does not
appear in the signature card. [TSN, April 13, 2005, p. 76-84]
She saw the debit-credit authorization on
her table and she kept it and did not give it to anybody. [Ibid. p. 116] After
Clarissa Ocampo was presented at the impeachment proceedings, Clarissa called her and she told Clarissa “Kissa,
hindi sa akin galing yong debit/credit” because Clarissa was asking her if she
was at the bank working and she told Clarissa that the bank was really bleeding
and she took the opportunity to tell her “Kissa, hindi sa akin galing yon. Saan
ba galing yon?”. [Ibid. p. 118] She
testified that Clarissa was just surprised and asked her “saan ba galing
yon?”. Where did it come from? She
answered she didn’t know but it didn’t come from her. That’s all she told
Clarissa. After that there was a follow-up from Atty. Curato asking her if she
did not really issue the authorization and she told him “No talaga eh. Sabi ko, hanapin natin kung saan talaga
galing.” She testified that later on, it
was confirmed that it came from the Trust Department. [Ibid. p. 118-119]
She testified that the Prefix Number for a Binondo Account was 0110 but
she could not remember the Prefix Number for the Pacific Star Branch. [Ibid. p.
93] In her computation, the credits to
the EPCIB Jose Velarde S/A No.0160-62501-5 totaled P2,168,523,085.00 excluding
centavos and credit memos. [TSN, April 18, 2005, p. 98]
The Court finds that the
FPres. Estrada is the real and beneficial owner of EPCIB combo account C/A No.
0110-25495-4 and S/A No. 0160-62501-5 in the name of Jose Velarde.
The eyewitness account of Prosecution
witness Clarissa Ocampo that she saw FPres. Estrada signed the name Jose
Velarde in the various documents presented to him and explained to him was
undisputed by FPres. Estrada and constitutes direct evidence that FPres.
Estrada signed as Jose Velarde.
Another direct evidence that FPres. Estrada is Jose
Velarde is the admission of FPres. Estrada that he signed as Jose
Velarde in the documents presented to him by Clarissa Ocampo. One of such documents was the Debit-Credit
Authority (Exh. E5) which read:
“...my SA/CA No.0160-62501-5 maintained with your branch in the amount of
P500,000,000.00 and credit my Trust Account No. 101-78056-1 representing my
initial contribution.” Such
admission constitutes an admission that he and Jose Velarde are one and the
same person. Being a judicial admission, no proof is required and may be given
in evidence against him (Rule 129, SEC.4; Rule 130, SEC. 26). Being an admission against interest, it is the best evidence which affords the greatest
certainty of the facts in dispute. The
rationale for the rule is based on the presumption that no man would declare
anything against himself unless such declaration was true. Thus, it is fair to presume that the
declaration corresponds with the truth, and it is his fault if it does not.
[Rufina Patis Factory vs Alusitain, 434 SCRA
429]
The
evidence of the Prosecution which showed that Baby Ortaliza - a trusted person
of FPres. Estrada and who enjoyed the confidence of FPres. Estrada and Loi
Ejercito - transacted the various personal bank accounts of FPres. Estrada and
Loi Ejercito as well as the Jose Velarde accounts, also constitutes
corroborative evidence that the Jose Velarde Accounts are owned by FPres.
Estrada and not by Dichaves, since Baby Ortaliza has been entrusted by FPres.
Estrada to handle his own personal bank accounts and there is no evidence that
Dichaves and Baby Ortaliza are related in any way to each other.
The
evidence of the Prosecution that the
Likewise, the evidence of the Prosecution which showed that three (3) Urban Bank Manager’s Checks for the amounts
of P10,875,749.43, P42,716,554.22 and P54,161,496.52 (Exh. I5-17, I5-18
and O5-2), received by JV Ejercito as well as the four
(4) Urban Bank Manager’s Checks totaling P75,000,000.00 (Exhs. B 15-2,
B15-4, B15-6 and B-15-8) were deposited to EPCIB S/A No. 0160-62501-5 of Jose
Velarde constitutes corroborative evidence that, as between FPres. Estrada and
Dichaves, it can be inferred that JV Ejercito, being the son of FPres. Estrada,
would contribute to the account of his father but not if the account were owned
by Dichaves in the absence of proof that JV Ejercito was under obligation to
deposit to the said account if the same was owned by Dichaves.
The evidence of the Prosecution that it
was customary for FPres. Estrada to sign as “Jose” shows that FPres. Estrada would sign as
“Jose” and further shows that, to the naked eye, the signature of FPres.
Estrada as “Jose” appearing in the various official documents signed by FPres.
Estrada is similar to the signature of “Jose” appearing in “Jose Velarde.”
As to the reliance of the Defense on the
testimonies of Dy Tang and Bagsit to prove that the Jose Velarde accounts
belong to Jaime Dichaves, We find that such reliance is misplaced.
Dy Tang testified that after Mr. George
Go referred Dichaves to him, he told
Dichaves to prepare a letter for records indicating his intention and
Dichaves sent him a letter saying that he is opening an account under the name
Jose Velarde and everything should be so…for safekeeping. [TSN, May 4, 2005, p. 20] Dy Tang identified the letter dated August
25, 1999. [Ibid. pp. 20-21; Exh. 127 to
127 B-1]
The Letter of Dichaves dated August 25, 1999 reads as follows:
Dear Romy,
May I request that a savings account
and a current account be opened with your Juan Luna branch for Jose Velarde c/o
the undersigned.
All other banking transactions of
Jose Velarde shall be coursed through the undersigned.
Very
truly yours,
(sgd)
Jaime Dichaves
The Letter of Dichaves
does not prove that he is the owner of the Jose Velarde Account. Assuming ex gratia argumenti that
the Jose Velarde Account is owned by Dichaves, why did he not deposit the
International Exchange Bank Check No. 6000159271 dated November 5, 1999,
payable to cash in the amount of P189,700,000.00 drawn by Eastern Securities
Corporation directly to the Jose Velarde Account? If Dichaves owned the Jose Velarde Account,
why did he take the circuitous route of depositing the International Exchange
Bank into his Far East Bank Savings Account, then auto transfer the amount to
his Current Account, then issue his personal check payable to cash for
P189,700,000.00 which was ultimately deposited to the Jose Velarde Account?
It could not be because
he did not want evidence to prove that the International Exchange Bank check
was deposited to his account because he, in fact, deposited that check to his
personal account.
The only logical
conclusion is that Dichaves did not want evidence to show that the
International Exchange Bank check of Eastern Securities Corporation was
deposited to the Jose Velarde Account because such deposit would confirm that
FPres. Estrada, once proven to own the Jose Velarde Account, received the
P189,700,000.00 commission arising from the purchase by SSS and GSIS of Belle
Shares.
Dichaves’ act of
covering the paper trail of the International Exchange Bank check of Eastern
Securities Corporation, albeit unsuccessfully, militates against the claim of
the Defense that Dichaves owns the Jose Velarde Account.
In his Sworn
Statement dated March 23, 2001 (Exh. 327), Dy Tang stated that Jaime Dichaves
opened the account but Dy Tang does not know if he opened it for himself or
another person. He gave the signature
card for Dichaves to fill up. The
signature card was returned after about a month or so, after a follow up with
him and after he followed several procedures. [TSN dated May 4, 2005, p. 22] The signature card was given to him by George
L. Go already accomplished. He was not
present when the depositor affixed his specimen signature in the said signature
card as it was given to him accomplished by George L. Go.
In the signature card, it appears that it
was opened on August 26, 1999 but it was
received only on October 7, 1999.
Likewise, the signature card bore the signature “Jose Velarde” three
times (Exh.
G19, G19-6).
In his testimony, Dy
Tang testified that he doesn’t think that it would be Dichaves signing as Jose
Velarde because when Mr. Dichaves called him about his discussion with Mr. Go
to open an account, Dichaves told him that he was going to open an account
under an alias account. [TSN, May 4, 2005,
p. 44]
Nowhere did Dy Tang testify that Dichaves is the owner of the Jose
Velarde account.
As appears in the signature
card, the signature of Jose Velarde is almost identical to the signature of
Jose Velarde appearing on the three (3) copies of the Investment Management
Agreement [Exh. W4 to Y4; TSN November 13, 2002, pp.
70-73], two (2) signature cards (Exh. Z4 to A5) which he
signed three (3) times [TSN, November
13, 2002, pp. 78-80] one (1) copy of the Investment Guidelines [Exh. B5;
Ibid. pp. 82-84]; two (2) copies of the Directional Letters [Exh. C5 to
D5; Ibid. pp. 87-89], and one (1) copy of the
debit-credit authority [Exh. E5; Ibid. pp. 92-93], which FPres.
Estrada signed as Jose Velarde as testified by Clarissa Ocampo and as admitted
by him. Under Section 22, Rule 132 of
the Rules of Court, the court is authorized, by itself, to make a comparison of
the disputed handwriting with writings admitted or treated as
genuine by the party against whom the evidence is offered or proved to be
genuine to the satisfaction of the judge. [Cogtong vs. Kyoritsu International Et. Al., GR
No. 160729, July 27, 2007]
As regards the
testimony of Beatriz Bagsit, her basis for saying that Jose Velarde accounts
belongs to Mr. Jaime Dichaves is that there was a letter that was given to her
that came from Mr. Dichaves when the accounts were opened in Binondo. When the accounts were opened in Binondo, she
was not handling the management of the same. Based on the letter, she testified
that it would appear that the Jose Velarde accounts belonged to Jaime Dichaves
because it was Mr. Jaime Dichaves who issued the letter stating that all banking
transaction of Jose Velarde should be coursed to him. [TSN, April 13, 2005, p. 68-72]
The testimony of
Bagsit does not establish that it is Dichaves who owns the Jose Velarde
accounts as her opinion was based simply on the letter issued by Dichaves. As against the inference that Dichaves owned
the Jose Velarde accounts based on the letter of Dichaves, the Prosecution’s
evidence showing that FPres. Estrada signed as Jose Velarde in the various
documents given to him for signature must be given more weight to establish the
fact that the Jose Velarde accounts belong to FPres. Estrada.
Moreover, there was a
glaring inconsistency in the testimonies of Defense witness Dy Tang and Bagsit
when Dy Tang testified that all the fixed (time) deposits of Dichaves were
moved in the branch of Bagsit in Pacific Star, while Bagsit testified that she
does not know if Dichaves has an account in her area, she thinks there is none
but she does not know with other branches. [TSN, May 4, 2005. pp. 26-28; TSN, April 13, 2005, p. 76]
As regards the
statement of Bagsit that the Debit-Credit authority did not come form her and
that later, it was found to have come from the Trust Department, We find the
testimony of Clarissa Ocampo that the Debit-Credit Authority came from Bagsit
as being more credible. First, because
the debit-credit authority deals with S/A 0160-62501-5 which is under the
Banking Department and not the Trust Department; and Second, because as
testified by Bagsit, she found the Debit- Credit Authority on her table after
it was signed but she kept it and did not give it to anybody. The Court likewise notes that Bagsit was not
involved with the EPCIB Binondo Branch but she remembers the prefix for Binondo
accounts as No. 0110, yet, she could not remember the prefix for accounts with
the Pacific Star Branch of EPCIB which she headed since 1999.
In the attempt to
downplay the effect of FPres. Estrada signing as Jose Velarde in the
Debit-Credit Authority, the defense argued that the said debit-credit authority
was not implemented “precisely because the signature of accused Estrada did not
match with that of the real Jose Velarde (who turned out to be Jaime Dichaves)
[Defense Memorandum, p. 251] and “probably because the bank officers got to
realize that accused President Estrada was not really the owner of the
account.” [Ibid., p. 263]
Besides being
speculative, the arguments of the Defense are mere allegations which are not
supported by its own evidence.
The
evidence of the Defense shows that prior to February 4, 2000, the account
balance of S/A 0160-62501-5 of Jose Velarde was P142,763,773.67. (Exh. 127-O) There was therefore not enough funds in the
account to transfer to the Trust Account.
Thus, the Debit-Credit Authority could not be implemented.
Subsequently, a
credit memo for P506,416,666.66 was issued in favor of the said Jose Velarde
S/A 0160-62501-5 account. As per the
testimony of defense witness, Beatriz Bagsit, the amount of P 506,416,666.66
represented the principal and interest of a preterminated placement of S/A
0160-62501-5. The placement was not in
the name of Dichaves but in the name of an account number, i.e. Account No.
0160-62501-5 and behind that account is Jose Velarde. [TSN, April 18, 2005, p. 37] Eventually
the P500,000,000.00 was withdrawn from the savings account in exchange for an
MC payable to trust. [Ibid. pp. 30, 31]
Consequently, while
the funding for the P500,000,000.00 did not come via the debit-credit
authority, nonetheless, the funding of the P500,000,000.00 came from S/A
0160-62501-5 of Jose Velarde.
Moreover, the
debit-credit authority was not implemented because Bagsit kept the debit-credit
authority and did not give it to anybody. [TSN, April 13, 2005, p. 116]
Neither does the
non-implementation of the Debit-Credit Authority which FPres. Estrada signed as
Jose Velarde disprove the fact that FPres. Estrada admitted that S/A
0160-62501-5 in the name of Jose Velarde is his account when he admitted
affixing his signature on the Debit-Credit
Authority as Jose Velarde.
The so-called
“internal arrangements” with the bank, involved the use of S/A 0160-62501-5
which had been in existence since August 26, 1999 as the funding source of the
P500,000,000.00 to be placed in the Trust account for lending to
Gatchalian. The fact that the P500,000,000.00
funding was not effected by a debit-credit transaction but by a withdrawal of
P500,000,000.00 from the said S/A 0160-62501-5 proves that the money lent to
Gatchalian was the personal money of FPres. Estrada through the Jose Velarde
account of which he is the owner. As
explained by FPres. Estrada, “William Gatchalian is a big businessman. Isang malaking negosyante at siya po ay may
ari ng Wellex group of companies at siya rin po ay isa sa tumulong sa aming
partido noong nakaraang 1998 presidential election.” [TSN, May 24, 2006, p. 23]
FPres. Estrada
further testified: “Hindi lang po dahil doon sa internal arrangement. Hindi
lang po dahil gusto kong tulungan si Mr. William Gatchalian kundi higit po sa
lahat ay nakita ko ang kapakanan noong mahigit na tatlong libong (3000)
empleyado na kung sakaling hindi mapapautang si Mr. William Gatchalian, maaring
magsara ang kanyang mga kumpanya at yong mga taong, mahigit tatlong libong
(3,000) empleyado kasama na yong kanilang mga pamilya ay mawawalan ng trabaho.
AT INISIP KO RING NA WALA NAMING (SIC) GOVERNMENT FUNDS NA INVOLVE KAYA HINDI
NA
Moreover, as pointed
out by the Prosecution, there was no need for the internal arrangement since
the loan to Gatchalian could have been extended by EPCIB directly considering
that Gatchalian had put up sufficient collateral for the loan.
From the foregoing,
the ineluctable conclusion is that the so-called internal arrangement which
allegedly prompted FPres. Estrada to sign the various documents presented to
him by Clarissa Ocampo is a futile attempt to escape the consequence of his
admission that he signed as Jose Velarde which leads to the legal and
indisputable conclusion that FPres. Estrada is the owner of the Jose Velarde Accounts.
THE DAMAGE AND PREJUDICE TO THE FILIPINO PEOPLE
As stated earlier, SSS and GSIS used the
funds belonging to its millions of members to buy Belle Shares upon instruction
of FPres. Estrada who benefited for his personal gain from the P189,700,000.00
commission paid in consideration of the purchase of the Belle shares by SSS and
GSIS . The money paid by GSIS and SSS for the Belle Shares are public funds which belong to the millions
of GSIS and SSS members. The amount of
P189,700,000.00 deposited to the Jose Velarde account of FPres. Estrada are
public funds which came from the proceeds of the sale received by SSI
Management through Eastern Securities from GSIS and SSS. The Billions of Pesos that could have
otherwise been used to pay benefits to SSS and GSIS members were diverted to
buying Belle Shares to comply with FPres. Estrada’s instructions in order that FPres.
Estrada could receive his P187,900,000.00 commission to the damage and prejudice
of the millions of GSIS and SSS members who were deprived of the use of such
funds and worse, who now stand to suffer the loss amounting to millions of
pesos since the Belle shares are presently priced less than their acquisition
cost. [From an average price of P3.14 per share to P0.69 per share as of
December 29, 2000 (Exh. 250-J-2) and between P0.40 to P 0.50 per share as of
February 11, 2002]
The
Court finds that FPres. Estrada took advantage of his official position, authority,
relationship, connection and influence to unjustly enrich himself at the
expense and to the damage and prejudice of the Filipino people and the Republic
of the Philippines: a) by instructing, directing
and ordering, for his personal gain and benefit, by way of receiving commission,
the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) through its President Mr.
Federico Pascual and the Social Security System (SSS) through its President,
Mr. Carlos Arellano, to purchase shares of stock Belle Corporation, as a
consequence of which, during the period October 13 to 21, 1999 GSIS bought
351,878,000 shares of Belle Corporation and paid One Billion One Hundred Two
Million Nine Hundred Sixty Five Thousand Six Hundred Seven Pesos And Fifty
Centavos (P1,102,965,607.50) while SSS, on October 21, 1999, bought 249,679,000 shares at the value of P784,551,150.00 at
an average price of P3.14/share [TSN, February 14, 2005, p.78] or a combined total of at least One Billion
Eight Hundred Eight Seven Million Five Hundred Sixteen Thousand Seven Hundred
Fifty Seven Pesos And Fifty Centavos (P1,887,516,757.50); b) by accepting and
receiving, a commission in the amount of One Hundred Eighty Nine Million Seven
Hundred Thousand Pesos [P189,700,000.00] as consideration for the purchase by
GSIS and SSS of the shares of stock of Belle Corporation pursuant to his
instructions which amount was deposited in the Equitable-PCI Bank S/A
0160-62501-5 under the account name “Jose Velarde” of which FPres. Estrada is
the real and beneficial owner; c) by depriving the millions of members of GSIS
and SSS of the use of public funds in the amount of at least One Billion Eight
Hundred Eight Seven Million Five Hundred Sixteen Thousand Seven Hundred Fifty
Seven Pesos And Fifty Centavos (P1,887,516,757.50) for payment of their benefits
in order that he can receive his commission of One Hundred Eighty Nine Million
Seven Hundred Thousand Pesos (P189,700,000.00) which likewise constitute public
funds for his personal benefit and enrichment
thus causing damage and prejudice to the Filipino people and the
Government.
RE: SUB-PARAGRAPH D OF THE
AMENDED INFORMATION
_____________________________
(d) by
unjustly enriching himself FROM COMMISSIONS, GIFTS, SHARES, PERCENTAGES,
KICKBACKS, OR ANY FORM OF PECUNIARY BENEFITS, IN CONNIVANCE WITH JOHN DOES AND
JANE DOES, in the amount of MORE OR LESS THREE BILLION TWO HNDRED
THIRTY THREE MILLION ONE HUNDRED FOUR THOUSAND AND ONE HUNDRED SEVENTY THREE
PESOS AND SEVENTEEN CENTAVOS [P3,233,104,173.17] AND DEPOSITING THE SAME
UNDER HIS ACCOUNT NAME “JOSE VELARDE” AT THE EQUITABLE-PCI BANK.
The
prosecution presented the following witnesses to prove the enormous amounts of
deposits to the Jose Velarde Account and the person who transacted with the
bank in relation thereto.
TERESA ARRASTIA
BARCELONA was the Manager of
Equitable PCI Bank in Greenhills-Ortigas Branch specifically located at the
Ground Floor of the
Witness
1.
October 20,
1999;
2.
November 8,
1999;
3.
November 22,
1999;
4.
November 24,
1999;
5.
November 25,
1999;
6.
December 20,
1999;
7.
December 21,
1999;
8.
December 29,
1999;
9.
January 4, 2000;
10.
May 10, 2000;
11.
June 6, 2000;
and
12.
July 25, 2000.
These deposit receipts allegedly show various
deposits made to Account No. 0160-62501-5 under the Account Name Jose Velarde maintained
at the Equitable PCI Bank Binondo Branch.
The transactions to the said account were allegedly inter-branch
deposits or deposits made from one branch of Equitable PCI Bank for an account
maintained at another branch of the said bank.
The aforementioned deposit receipts show that the deposits to the
adverted account were transacted at the Equitable PCI Bank Greenhills-Ortigas
Branch.
In the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated
October 20, 1999, there were allegedly nine (9) checks deposited to the Jose
Velarde Account. The total amount of the
checks deposited was P143,000,000.00.
The teller who processed the checks was Glyzelyn Bejec.
In
the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated November 8, 1999, four (4) checks
were deposited to the Jose Velarde Account in the total amount of
P263,292,303.65. The checks deposited
were as follows: a Far East Bank and Trust Co. Araneta Branch Check with Check
No. 3165579 amounting to P189,700,000.00; an HSBC Head Office Check with Check
No. 0022012 amounting to P20,000,000.00; a Union Bank Head Office Check with
Check No. 034181 amounting to P10,875,749.43; and another Union Bank Head
Office Check with Check No. 034182 amounting to P42,716,554.22. These checks were likewise processed by
Glyzelyn Bejec on November 8, 1999 at 4:01 p.m.
In
the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated November 22, 1999, three (3)
checks for the total amount of P40 Million were deposited to the Jose Velarde
Account. These checks were processed by
the bank’s teller Joan Mok.
In
the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated November 24, 1999, a check of
P54,161,496.52 was deposited to the Jose Velarde Account. The check was processed by the bank’s teller
Leonora Royo on November 24, 1999 at 9:26 a.m.
In
the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated November 25, 1999, three (3)
checks for the total amount of P20,000,000.00 were deposited to the Jose
Velarde Account. These checks were
processed by the bank’s teller Glyzelyn Bejec.
In
the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated December 20, 1999, three (3)
checks for the total amount of P163,500,000.00 were deposited to the Jose
Velarde Account. These checks were
processed by the bank’s teller Lagrimas Claveria on December 20, 1999 at 4:12
p.m.
In
the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated December 21, 1999, a check of
P5,000,000.00 was deposited to the Jose Velarde Account. The check was processed by the bank’s teller
Glyzelyn Bejec.
In
the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated December 29, 1999, two (2) checks
for the total amount of P2,500,000.00 were deposited to the Jose Velarde
Account. These checks were processed by
the bank’s teller Glyzelyn Bejec.
In
the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated January 4, 2000, seven (7) checks
for the total amount of P70,500,000.00 were deposited to the Jose Velarde
Account. These checks were processed by
the bank’s teller Joan Mok on January 4, 2000 at 2:31 p.m.
In
the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated May 10, 2000, four (4) checks for
the total amount of P23,000,000.00 were deposited to the Jose Velarde
Account. These checks were processed by
the bank’s teller Joan Mok on May 10, 2000 at 4:30 p.m.
In
the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated June 6, 2000, two (2) checks for
the total amount of P42,945,000.00 were deposited to the Jose Velarde
Account. These checks were processed by
the bank’s teller Joan Mok on June 6, 2000 at 3:39 p.m.
Lastly,
in the Equitable PCI Bank Deposit Receipt dated July 25, 2000, a check of
P40,000,000.00 was deposited to the Jose Velarde Account. This check was processed by the bank’s teller
Glyzelyn Bejec on July 25, 2000 at 11:43 a.m.
It
was Baby Ortaliza who personally transacted the above-mentioned checks with
JOANNE
GENEVIE RANIAGA MOK was a Customer
Service Assistant Teller of Equitable PCI Bank Greenhills-Ortigas Branch since
July 1997. She received deposits and
processed withdrawals made with the bank.
Mok related and identified four (4) Equitable PCI
Bank deposit receipts which pertained to various checks deposited to the Jose
Velarde Account with Account No. 0160-62501-5: Deposit Receipt dated November
22, 1999 (Exh. N5); Deposit Receipt dated January 4, 2000 (Exh. T5);
Deposit Receipt (Exhibit U5) dated May 10, 2000; and Deposit Receipt
(Exhibit V5) dated June 6, 2000.
Mok testified that she personally processed the checks deposited to the
said account.
In the Deposit Receipt dated November 22, 1999, there
were three (3) checks deposited with the total amount of P40 Million. In the Deposit Receipt dated January 4, 2000,
there were seven (7) checks deposited with the total amount of P70,500,000.00. In the Deposit Receipt dated May 10, 2000,
there were four (4) checks deposited with the total amount of P23,000,000.00.
Lastly, in the Deposit Receipt dated June 6, 2000, there were two (2) checks
deposited with the total amount of P44,945,000.00
Mok further related that she prepared 3 copies of the
deposit receipts and that after processing the deposit receipts she threw away
the Account Information slip. [TSN dated May 20, 2002 and TSN dated October 28,
2002]
GLYZELYN
HERMOZURA BEJEC was a Customer
Service Assistant Teller of Equitable PCI Bank Greenhills-Ortigas Branch. She processed deposit and withdrawal
transactions of the bank.
Bejec related and identified the deposit receipts of
Equitable PCI Bank (Exhs. I5, M5, P5, R5,
S5 and W5) which pertained to various checks she personally
processed and credited to the Jose Velarde Account with Account No. 0160-62501-5. In the Deposit Receipt dated November 8,
1999, the total amount of deposit was P263,292,303.65. In the Deposit Receipt dated October 20, 1999,
there were nine (9) checks deposited in the total amount of
P163,000,000.00. In the Deposit Receipt
dated November 25, 1999, there were three (3) checks deposited in the total
amount of P20,000,000.00. In the Deposit
Receipt dated December 21, 1999, the total amount of deposit was P5,000,000.00.
In the Deposit Receipt dated December
29, 1999, there were two (2) checks deposited in the total amount of
P2,500,000.00. Lastly, in the Deposit Receipt
dated July 25, 2000, a check was deposited in the amount of
P40,000,000.00.
On cross examination, Bejec testified that there were Account Information Slips when the
checks were presented but she already threw away the said slips. It was the policy of the bank to throw away
the Account Information Slips when the deposit receipt had been generated. [TSN dated May 6, 13, and 20, 2002]
LEONORA
BACSAFRA ROYO was the Customer
Service Assistant for new accounts of Equitable PCI Bank Greenhills-Ortigas
Branch since March of 1993. She
testified that she was the teller who processed the Deposit Receipt (Exh. O5)
dated November 24, 1999 and that she prepared three (3) copies of the same
since it was an inter-branch check deposit transaction. The deposit receipt shows that an Urban Bank
Head Office Branch Manager’s Check No. 0000037661 dated November 23, 1999
amounting to P54,161,496.52 was deposited to the Jose Velarde Account No.
0160-62501-5 maintained at the Equitable PCI Bank Binondo Branch. Teresa Barcelona, the branch manager, handed
to Royo for processing the Urban Bank Manager’s Check as well as the
accomplished account information slip. [TSN dated October 30, 2002]
ANTONIO
MARTIN SAGRITALO FORTUNO was the
Bank Operations Officer of Equitable PCI Bank, Pacific Star Branch since
January 28, 2002. The witness averred
that he handled the opening of accounts; supervised the investment section; the
foreign telegraphic transfer as well as the domestic telegraphic transfer and
the safekeeping of the records of deposits; and the transactions which
transpired in their branch. Witness
Fortuno brought with him to Court the documents contained in the subpoena which
he requested from the PCHC. These
documents were the seventeen (17) microfilm copies of the checks that were
deposited to the Jose Velarde account from the PCHC; the nine (9) deposit slips
or deposit receipts that were deposited to the account of Jose Velarde together
with the five (5) cash deposits; and the detailed report of transfers and
debit, credit memos or the DRTM from October 19, 1999 to January 24, 2000.
Fortuno related and identified the seventeen (17)
microfilm copies of checks that were deposited to the Jose Velarde account from
various banks as well as the deposit receipts and the DRTMs.
The original of the checks were allegedly returned to
the issuing bank after having been negotiated.
The first check deposited to the Jose Velarde account was a cashier’s
check from PS Bank Head Office with Check No. 000031436 amounting to
P20,000,000.00 and dated October 18, 1999 (Exhs. R14; R14-1; and R14-2). Fortuno narrated that this check was
presented to the teller of the bank and then the teller validated the deposit
slip which was attached to the check.
The amount of the check was consequently credited to the Jose Velarde
account with an Account No. 0160-62501-5.
The witness, however, cannot tell who purchased this cashier’s
check. The second check deposited to the
Jose Velarde account was also a cashier’s check from PS Bank Head Office with
Check No. 000031437 amounting to P20 Million and dated October 18, 1999 (Exhs.
S14; S14-1; S14-2; S14-3; and S14-4). This
check allegedly passed the same procedure as the first check before the amount
of the check was credited to the Jose Velarde account. The witness further related that the Jose
Velarde account was maintained at the Binondo Juan Luna branch and that the
deposits were made in the Pacific Star.
The first deposit receipt (Exhs. T14; T14-1; T14-2; T14-3; and T14-4) was dated October 19, 1999. This deposit receipt allegedly shows that
there were two (2) checks deposited to the Jose Velarde Account for the total
amount of P30,000,000.00, one for P20 Million and the other for P10
Million. The witness specified that this
deposit receipt indicated the account name Jose Velarde; the branch name as
Pacific Star branch; the account number 0160-62501-5; the date and time of
deposit which was on October 19, 1999 at 12:55 in the afternoon; and the checks
deposited which were from the Security Bank Corporation Main Office with Check
No. 000363859 for P20,000,000.00 and Check No. 000363858 for
P10,000,000.00. He added that the checks
were dated October 18, 1999.
The second deposit receipt (Exhs. U14; U14-1; U14-2; U14-3; and U14-4) was also dated October 19, 1999. This deposit receipt allegedly shows that
there were two (2) checks deposited to the Jose Velarde Account for the total
amount of P30,000,000.00, one for P20,000,000.00 and the other for
P10,000,000.00. The witness specified
that this deposit receipt contained the account name Jose Velarde; the branch
name as Pacific Star branch; the account number 0160-62501-5; the date and time
of deposit which was on October 19, 1999 at 12:53 in the afternoon; and the
checks deposited, the first check was from the Security Bank Corporation Main
Office with Check No. 000363857 for P20,000,000.00, and the other check was
from PSB Head Office with Check No. 0000031438 for P10,000,000.00. These checks were dated October 18,
1999.
The third deposit receipt (Exhibits V14; V14-1; V14-2; V14-3; and V14-4) was
likewise dated October 19, 1999. This
deposit receipt allegedly shows that there were two (2) checks deposited to the
Jose Velarde Account for the total amount of P50,000,000.00, one for
P20,000,000.00 and the other for P30,000,000.00. Witness Fortuno identified the account name
as Jose Velarde; the branch name as Pacific Star branch; the account number
0160-62501-5; the date and time of deposit which was on October 19, 1999 at
12:49 in the afternoon; and the checks deposited, the first check was from the
Global Bank Head Office with Check No. 0000107383 for P30,000,000.00, and the
other check was also from the Global Bank Head Office with Check No. 00017385
for P20,000,000.00. These checks were
both dated October 18, 1999.
The fourth deposit receipt (Exhibits W14; W14-1; and W14-2) was
dated November 3, 1999. This deposit
receipt allegedly shows that a check deposit was made to the Jose Velarde
Account for P5,000,000.00. Witness
Fortuno identified the account name as Jose Velarde; the branch name as Pacific
Star branch; the account number 0160-62501-5; the date and time of deposit
which was on November 3, 1999 at 11:03 in the morning; and the check deposited
which was from Westmont Bank in Ayala Avenue with Check No. 000187472 for
P5,000,000.00. The said check was dated
October 26, 1999.
The fifth deposit receipt (Exhibits X14; X14-1; and X14-2) was
also dated November 3, 1999. This
deposit receipt allegedly shows that a check deposit was made to the Jose
Velarde Account for P5,000,000.00. The
particulars of this deposit receipt were the same as the fourth deposit receipt
except for the time of deposit, which was at 11:04 in the morning, and the
check deposited which was from Westmont Bank in
The sixth deposit receipt (Exhs. Y14; Y14-1; and Y14-2) was
dated December 17, 1999. This deposit
receipt allegedly shows that a check deposit was made to the Jose Velarde
Account for P50,000,000.00. The check
deposited was allegedly from Equitable PCI Bank in Divisoria - M. De Santos
branch with Check No. 0783236 for P50,000,000.00.
The seventh deposit receipt (Exhs. Z14; Z14-1; Z14-2; Z14-3; and Z14-4) was dated January 11, 2000. This deposit receipt allegedly shows that there
were two (2) checks deposited to the Jose Velarde Account for the total amount
of P26,325,055.65, one for P20,000,000.00 and the other for P6,325,055.65. Witness Fortuno identified the account name
as Jose Velarde; the branch name as Pacific Star branch; the account number
0160-62501-5; the date and time of deposit which was on January 11, 2000 at
12:39 in the afternoon; and the checks deposited, the first check was from
Equitable PCI Bank in Divisoria – M. De Santos branch with Check No. 0111-795-117
for P20 Million, and the other check was from Bank of Commerce in Port Area
with Check No. 0030474 for P6,325,055.65.
The Equitable PCI Bank check was dated January 6, 2000 while the Bank of
Commerce check was dated January 11, 2000.
The eight deposit receipt (Exh. A15) was dated January 19, 2000. This deposit receipt with an account
information slip (Exh. A15-1) allegedly shows that a cash deposit of P25,000,000.00 was made to
the Jose Velarde Account. Witness
Fortuno testified that the account name Jose Velarde as well as the account
number were specified in the account information slip.
Last for the deposit receipt (Exh. B15) was dated January 24, 2000. This deposit receipt allegedly shows that
there were four (4) checks deposited to the Jose Velarde Account for the total
amount of P75,000,000.00. The account
name Jose Velarde as well as the account number were specified in an account
information slip (Exh. B15-1) for this deposit receipt. The
four (4) checks deposited (Exhs. B15-2; B15-3; B15-4; B15-5; B15-6; B15-7; B15-8; and B15-9) were allegedly manager’s checks from the head
office of Urban Bank and all dated January 18, 2000. Witness Fortuno testified that the first
check with Check No. 00039976 was for P2,000,000.00; the second check with Check
No. 00039975 was for P70,000,000.00; the third check with Check No. 00039978
was for P1,000,000.00; and the fourth check with Check No. 00039977 was for
P2,000,000.00.
Fortuno continued on his direct-examination and
testified as to the Detailed Report of Transfers and Credit Memorandums (DRTM)
dated October 19, 1999; DRTM dated November 3, 1999; DRTM dated December 15,
1999; DRTM dated December 17, 1999; DRTM dated January 11, 2000; DRTM dated
January 19, 2000; and DRTM dated January 24, 2000. The witness explained that these DRTM
reflects the inter-branch transactions which were done at the Equitable PCI
Bank Pacific Star branch. These DRTM
allegedly show the summary of the transactions made particularly to the Jose
Velarde Account with Account No. 0160-62501-5.
The witness testified that the DRTM dated December
15, 1999 (Exhs. C15 and C15-1) reflects the summary of four (4) cash deposits to
the Jose Velarde Account. The first cash
deposit was for P25,900,000.00; the second cash deposit was for P37,126,467.83;
the third cash deposit was for P38,325,629.67; and the fourth cash deposit was
for P43,647,902.50. The DRTM dated
October 19, 1999 (Exhs. D15 and D15-1)
reflects the summary of four (4) deposits to the Jose Velarde Account. The first deposit was for P30,000,000.00; the
second deposit was for P30,000,000.00; the third deposit was for
P40,000,000.00; and the fourth deposit was for P50,000,000.00. The total amount of deposits for October 19,
1999 was P150,000,000.00. The DRTM dated
November 3, 1999 (Exhs. E15 and E15-1)
reflects the summary of two (2) check deposits to the Jose Velarde
Account. Each of these check deposits
was for P5,000,000.00 for the total amount of P10,000,000.00. The DRTM dated December 17, 1999 (Exhs. F15 and F15-1) reflects a deposit to the Jose Verlarde Account
for P50,000,000.00. The DRTM dated
January 11, 2000 (Exhs. G15 and G15-1)
reflects the summary of two (2) deposits to the Jose Velarde account for the
total amount of P26,325,055.65. The
first deposit was for P20,000,000.00 and the second deposit was for
P6,325,055.65. The DRTM dated January
19, 2000 (Exhs. H15 and H15-1) shows a cash deposit to the Jose Velarde Account
for P25,000,000.00. Lastly, the DRTM
dated January 24, 2000 (Exhs. I15 and I15-1) reflects a check deposit to the Jose Velarde
Account for P75,000,000.00.
Fortuno claimed that the head of the branch of the
bank at the time the foregoing deposits were made was Beatriz Bagsit. He added that the total amount of cash and
check deposits for the period of October 19, 1999 to January 24, 2000
aggregated to P481,325,055.65.
On cross examination, Fortuno clarified that the
Equitable PCI Bank Pacific Star branch had no specimen signatures of Jose
Velarde. He also admitted that he had no
personal knowledge on any matter relating to the Jose Verlade Account nor does
he know the persons who made the cash and check deposits. He testified that none of the names of FPres.
Estrada and Jinggoy Estrada appear in the deposit slips or checks he exhibited
and identified. [TSN dated November 25, 2002 and TSN dated November 27, 2002]
MICHELLETTE
SOLIDUM LEGASPI was the Branch Head
of Equitable PCI Bank Greenhills-Virra Mall Branch on December 19, 1997 until
July 26, 2002. The branch was near North
Greenhills Subdivision,
The Virra Mall Branch was merged with the Greenhills
Shopping Center Branch on July 26, 2002.
All the bank records and documents of the branch were forwarded to the
warehouse of the head office.
Legaspi brought a Certification (Exhibit T15)
dated November 27, 2002, accomplished and executed by Judy L. Go,
Vice-President and Branch Head, Juan Luna Binondo Center, Equitable PCI Bank
which certified that Savings Account No. 016062501-5 and Current Account No.
011025495-4 were both under the name of Jose Velarde. [Ibid, pp. 49-56]
Legaspi then identified seven (7) Electronic Clearing
Systems Reports with attached documents which were microfilm copies of certain
checks. She explained that the
Electronic Clearing systems Report was the summary of all checks received and
processed at Greenhills-Virra Mall Branch and then sent to PCHC for
clearing. The microfilm copies of the
checks supported the summary of the Electronic Clearing systems Report. The documents were handed over to Legaspi by
their Legal Department.
The Electronic Clearing Systems Report showed the
batch sent by the branch to PCHC for clearing.
The report bore the routing number of the branch and the identification
of the checks that were sent to the Philippine Clearing House Corporation (PCHC).
For the September 10, 1999 Report (Exhibit U15,
with sub markings), ten (10) checks were processed by the branch. The microfilm copies of the checks bore the
Account No. 016062501-5 which meant that the checks were deposited to the said
account. Legaspi explained that the
account number was found at the back of the checks. The back of the microfilm checks also bore a
certification from the PCHC that the item was a photocopy of the original
clearing document processed by PCHC.
The following microfilm copies were presented: Allied Bank Check No. 00080546 for P10,000,000.00;
Check No. 0080566 for P10,000,000.00; Check No. 0080548 for P10,000,000.00;
Check No. 0080542 for P10,000,000.00; Check No. 0080543 for P10,000,000.00;
Check No 0084547 for P5,000,000.00; Check No. 0080544 for P5,000,000.00; Westmont bank Ayala Branch Check No.
000181135 for P5,000,000.00; Metrobank Check No. 0091780568 for P5,000,000.00;
Far East Bank Check No. 3165562 for P20,000,000.00 with Jaime Dichavez or Abbie
Dichavez as account holder.
Attached to the report was a document entitled
Detailed Report of Transfer and/or Credit and Debit memo (U15-12) of
Greenhills, Virra Mall Branch as of September 10, 1999. On the report, an inter-branch transaction on
September 10, 1999 was made for Account No 016062501-5 for P90,000,000.00. The report was secured by the bank’s Legal
Department pursuant to the subpoena.
For the September 30, 1999 Electronic Clearing
Systems Report (Exhibit V15, with submarkings), two checks were
deposited to Account No 016062501-1. These
were Equitable Bank Binondo Branch Check No. 0811277 for P8,300,000.00 and
Allied Bank Check No. 0080550 for P20,000,000.00. The dorsal side of the Equitable check bore the
account name Jose Velarde and Account No. 016062501-1.
Another attached document was the transaction journal
log report (Exhibit V15-4) which showed the two deposits. Reflected on the journal log was the amount
P995,371.66 indicating the last balance of the Account as of September 29,
1999. A late Deposit Transactions Report of the Branch as of September 30, 1999
reflected that the two checks deposited were late deposit transactions so that
they were considered the following day transactions. A Detailed Report of Transfer and/or Memo of
Greenhills, Virra Mall dated September 30, 1999 also reflected the two checks.
The third Electronic Clearing Systems Report (Exhibit
W15, with sub markings) presented was dated October 6, 1999. The details contained the following: Equitable Bank Manager’s check in the amount
of P300,000,000.00 deposited to Account No. 016062501-5. The journal log reported the P300,000,000.00
deposit on October 5, 1999. A detailed
report of Transfer Memo (Exhibit W15-4) of the branch dated October 6, 1999
showed that a P300,000,000.00 check deposit to Account No. 016062501-5.
The next Electronic Clearing Systems Report (Exhibit
X15, with sub markings) was dated November 26, 1999 and showed that
three checks were processed by the branch.
These checks were: Equitable Bank
Check No. 0811579 for P20,000,000.00, Check No. 0811580 for P20,000,000.00 and
Check No. 0811582 for P60,000,000.00.
The dorsal portions of the checks bore the account number 01602501-5
where the checks were deposited. The Detailed
Report of Transaction Memo (Exhibit X15-5) dated November 26, 1999 also
showed these three transactions. Since
the checks were deposited beyond the clearing cut-off time, the late deposit
transactions report ( Exhibit X15-6) was also presented.
The Electronic Clearing Systems Report (Exhibit Y15,
with sub markings) dated November 29, 1999 showed a Westmont Bank check No.
0000187474 deposit for P25 Million which against bore the account No.
016062501-5. A detailed Report Transfer Memo
(Exhibit Y15-3) was presented to show this interbranch
transaction. The late transaction report
dated November 29 for the P25,000,000.00 check deposit was also presented. [Ibid,
pp. 51-137]
Electronic Clearing System Report (Exhibit Z15,
with sub markings) dated December 1, 1999 showed a Metrobank Magdalena Center
Check No. 035400 for P53,000,000.00. The
detailed report transfer (Exhibit Z15-3) reflected that the P53,000,000.00
check was deposited to Account No. 016062501-5.
The last Electronic Clearing Systems Report (Exhibit
A16, with sub markings) dated December 2, 1999 showed that Equitable
PCI Binondo Branch Check No. 0811596 for P50,000,000.00, Check No. 0811597 for
P50,000,000.00 and Allied bank Check No. 0176625 for P20,000,000.00 were
processed. Attached were two transaction
journals (Exhibit A16-5) dated December 1, 1999 showing these
inter-branch transactions.
Legaspi explained that they were unable to produce
the deposit slips representing the inter-branch deposits made to the account of
Jose Velarde because all the documents pertaining to the Virra Mall branch were
forwarded to the warehouse. They were
still in the process of retrieving the other documents pertaining to the
deposit slips. [TSN dated December 4, 2000, pp. 11-23]
Legaspi testified that the transactions were made by
Baby Ortaliza whom she identified in a photograph (Exht X5). [Ibid, pp.
24-30]
On cross examination, Legaspi testified that she was
certain that the deposit receipts were actually accomplished and saw Baby
Ortaliza several times transacting at the branch. [Ibid, pp. 31-34]
MELISSA
PORTO PASCUAL was a bank teller of
Equitable PCI Bank Greenhills Virra Mall Branch from April 1, 1999 to January
of 2002. She processed cash deposits,
check deposit deposits, withdrawals and encashment during that time.
The
witness then related and identified microfilm copies of checks which she
claimed that she personally processed for inter-branch deposits. These checks were: Equitable PCI Bank Check (Exh. V15-2
and submarkings) No. 0811277 dated September 26, 1999 with the amount of
P80,300,000.00; Allied Bank Check (Exh. V15-3 and submarkings) No.
0080550 dated September 15, 1999 with the amount of P20,000,000.00; Equitable
PCI Bank Check (Exh. W15-2 and submarkings) No. 0241001331 dated September
13, 1999 with the amount of P300,000,000.00; Equitable PCI Bank Check (Exh. X15-2
and submarkings) No. 0811579 dated November 23, 1999 with the amount of
P20,000,000.00; Equitable PCI Bank Check (Exh. X15-3 and
submarkings) No. 0811580 dated November 23, 1999 with the amount of
P20,000,000.00; Equitable PCI Bank Check (Exh. X15-4 and
submarkings) No. 0811582 dated November 23, 1999 with the amount of
P60,000,000.00; Westmont Bank Check (Exh. Y15-2 and submarkings) No.
0000187474 dated November 27, 1999 with the amount of P25,000,000.00; and
Allied Bank Check (Exh. A16-4 and submarkings) No. 0176625 dated
December 1, 1999 with the amount of P20,000,000.00.
The foregoing checks were deposited by Baby Ortaliza
to the Jose Velarde Account with Account No. 0160-62501-5 which was maintained
at Equitable PCI Bank Binondo Branch.
Pascual described the physical appearance of Baby Ortaliza and
identified her in a photograph (Exh. X5).
To corroborate her claim that she personally
processed the aforementioned checks, witness Pascual further related and
identified the Electronic Clearing System Report (Exhs. U15 to Z15-3)
dated November 26, 1999; the Electronic Clearing System Report dated October 6,
1999; the Journal Report dated October 5, 1999; the Electronic Clearing System
Report dated September 30, 1999; the Electronic Clearing System Report dated
November 29, 1999; the Electronic Clearing System Report dated December 2,
1999; and the Journal Report dated December 1, 1999. [TSN dated December 9,
2002]
LAMBERTO BAJACAN
Del
Fonso identified the bank statements relative to the Jose Velarde Savings
Account No. 0160-62501-5 for the period beginning August 1, 1999 to November
30, 2000 (Exhs. D19 to D19-13, inclusive of submarkings) and
to Current Account No. 0110-25495-4 for the period beginning August 1, 1999 to
October 31, 2000 (Exhs. E19 to E19-14). As to Savings Account No. 0160-62501-5, he
testified that the account was closed on November 13, 2000 (Exh. D19-13). As to Current Account No. 0110-25495-4,
witness Del Fonso identified a transaction for October 6, 1999 (Exh. E19-2) for
an automatic transfer of the amount of P29,304,219.69 from the savings
account. On the same day, there was an
Inward Check deposit amounting to P142 million.
For the other months, there were either minimal transactions or none at
all.
With
respect to the account holder – Jose Velarde, Del Fonso testified that he had
no address indicated in the accounts as the same were simply “c/o EBC” or “care
of Equitable Banking Corporation” through its Head Office in Binondo,
RENE COLIN
DACIO GRAY was head of the Cash
Department of Urban Bank sometime on January 2000. He presented and identified a Manager’s Check
No. 43222 dated January 17, 2000 (Exh. W19) issued by Urban Bank
Greenhills Branch which totalled Seventy Five Million Pesos
(P75,000,000.00). Gray related that the
Chairman of Urban Bank, Arsenio Bartolome, asked him to divide this check into
four (4) checks - Urban Bank Check Nos. 39975, 39976, 39977 and 39978 (Exhs. B15-2,
B15-4 B15-6 B15-8) all dated January 18, 2000.
[TSN, March 31, 2003, pp. 8-31]
AURORA CHUMACERA BALDOZ (Baldoz) was the
Vice-President of the Receivership and Liquidation Group 2 of the Philippine
Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) since March 24, 1994. As such, she actually administered the
receivership, take-over and liquidation of banks that the Monetary Board orders
for closure. She testified that she
became familiar with Urban Bank because it was her group that implemented the
take-over of the said bank on April 26, 2000.
Baldoz
presented and identified documents relative to Account No. 858 (Exh. M19)
of the Urban Bank, particularly, the Letter of Authority dated November 23, 1999
(Exh. I19); Letter of Authority dated January 29, 2000 (Exh. J19);
Letter of Authority dated April 24, 2000 (Exh. K19); as well as
Urban Bank Check No. 052093 dated April 24, 2000 in the amount of
P107,191,780.85, and a Signature Card of Savings Account No. 0116-17345-9 (Exh.
L19). Baldoz further
identified a Certification (Exh. N19) that she issued to the fact that as receiver of
Urban Bank, PDIC found no bank records showing any account under the name of
Jose Velarde, Joseph E. Estrada, Laarni Enriquez, Guia Gomez, Rowena Lopez,
Peachy Osorio, Joy Melendrez, Kevin or Kelvin Garcia, 727, 737, 747, 757, and
777. She further certified (Exh. N19–2)
that Accounts “A/C 858” and “T/A 858” did not appear in the Registry of
Deposits of Urban Bank and were not part of the deposit liabilities of the said
bank. [TSN dated March 24, 2003]
MARIE ROSE ANCHETA CLAUDIO (Claudio) was the Vice-President of Urban Bank and
the Manager of Urban Bank San Juan Branch.
She was part of the senior management of Urban Bank, particularly its
business development committee which handled the business aspect of the bank.
As area manager, she was in-charge of supervising four (4) branches of Urban
Bank. On the other hand, as branch
manager, she handled the accounts of the Greenhills branch clients in terms of
deposits, loans and other products and it was in the course of her duties as
such that she became familiar with Trust Account No. 858 or Special Private
Account No. (SPAN) 858.
Claudio
testified that it was Arsenio Bartolome, then the Chairman of Urban Bank, who
asked her to open Trust Account No. 858 and to accept a deposit of Ten Million
Pesos (P10,000,000.00). The deposit was
accordingly processed based on Trading Order No. 776313 (Exh. Q19) dated
January 6, 1999. She came to know that
the owner of the account was Joseph Victor Ejercito when she was asked to take
hold of a Trust Agreement (Exh. R19) from the Head Office about two (2) to three (3)
weeks after she accepted the cash.
Claudio further testified that the Head Office gave it to her to be
given in turn to the client for signature.
She added that she personally delivered the document along with a
signature card to the office of Joseph Victor Ejercito. A few weeks after she left the documents it
in his office, she came back and picked them up and gave them back tot her Head
Office. She also testified that she was
familiar with the signature of Joseph Victor Ejercito because he was a client
of the bank.
Also
in connection with Trust Account No. 858, Claudio handled the acceptance of all
deposits to the said account through Trading Orders. Thus, she became familiar
with Trading Order No. 035006-A (Exh. S19) dated January 27, 1999 in
the amount of Fifty Million Pesos (P50,000,000.00). For effecting withdrawals from the said
account, Claudio explained that trading orders, manager’s checks and letters of
authorities were required. She added
that she was familiar with some withdrawals, particularly those covered by
Trading Order No. 060851 (Exh. T19) dated September 30, 1999 in the
amount of Forty Two Million Pesos Three Hundred Sixty Thousand Eight Hundred
Ninety Nine Pesos and Seventeen Centavos (P42,360,899.17) and with maturity
value of Forty Million Seven Hundred Sixteen Thousand Five Hundred Fifty Four
Pesos and Twenty Two Centavos (P42,716,554.22) (Exh. T19-2), which she approved and which
was covered by Manager’s Check No. 0000034182 dated November 8, 1999 (Exh. I5-18).
Claudio
also identified a withdrawal from the account through Trading Order No. 804490
(Exh. U19) with deal date November 5, 1999 with a maturity value of
Ten Million Eight Hundred Seventy Five Thousand Seven Hundred Forty Nine Pesos
and Forty Three Centavos (P10,875,749.43) covered by Urban Bank Manager’s Check
No. 34181 (Exh. I5-17) that was processed by branch accountant
Aileen Tiongson and which she approved.
Lastly, Claudio identified Trading Order No. 808554 (Exh. V19)
with a net maturity value of Fifty Four Million One Hundred Sixty One Thousand
Four Hundred Ninety Six Pesos and Fifty Two Centavos covered by Urban Bank
Manager’s Check No. 0000037661 (Exh. O5 with submarkings). Witness Claudio verified that she gave the
three (3) manager’s checks for withdrawals to Joseph Victor Ejercito. [TSN
dated March 26, 2003]
MA. AILEEN CANDELARIA TIONGSON (Tiongson) was the Branch Accountant of Urban Bank
San Juan Branch from December 18, 1999 to March, 2000. Among her duties was to ensure that all
transactions of the bank and all policies in the branch were properly
implemented. Her duties also included
checking trading orders prepared by the account officer for traditional and
non-traditional products, facilitating the issuance of certificates of
deposits, and processing the issuance of manager’s checks for withdrawal
transactions. Tiongson clarified that
non-traditional products included trust products or investment placements under
trust agreements.
Tiongson
testified that she was familiar with Account No. 858 because she processed some
of the transactions of the client like the issuance of manager’s check. She added that she was familiar with
Manager’s Check Bearing No. 43222 (Exh. W19) dated January 17, 2000
in the amount of P75 Million payable to cash.
She added that the source of the manager’s check was the pre-terminated
placement of Account No. 858. With
respect to the said check, Tiongson testified that the placing of “payable to
cash” in a manager’s check is not a regular procedure in the bank because a
manager’s check should be payable to a specified person. [TSN dated April 2, 2003]
GUILLERMO
ARAZA BRIONES (Briones) was the Deputy Receiver / Liquidator of the
Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) assigned to Urban Bank at the
time it was under receivership.
Briones testified that as Deputy Receiver, he took
charge of all the assets and affairs of the bank and also acted as custodian of
the said records. In such capacity, he
came across Account No. 858 as he was instructed by PDIC Vice President Aurora
Baldoz to look for documents pertaining thereto. He collated the documents and consequently
prepared an inventory list (Exh. V20 – V20-4). Briones identified and verified the following
entries therein: (1) entry A-2 as referring to Trading Order No. 020385 (Exh. T19)
dated January 29, 1999; (2) entry A-21 referring to Manager’s Check No. 43222
dated January 17, 2000 in the amount of seventy-five million pesos
(P75,000,000.00) (Exh. W19); (3) entry B-3 referring to Trading Order No.
035006 dated January 27, 1999 (Exh. S19); (4) entry B-25 referring
to Trading Order No. 808554 dated November 22, 1999 (Exh. V19); (5)
entry C-22 and C-23 referring to Trading Order No. 060851 dated September 30,
1991 (Exh. P19); (6) entry D-34 referring to Trading Order No.
804490 dated November 5, 1999 (Exh. B20-3); and entries E-3, E-4,
and E-5 referring to letters of authority dated November 23, 1999 (Exh. I19),
January 17, 2000 (Exh. J19), and April 24, 2000 (Exh. K19). After collating the documents, he submitted
them to Aurora Baldoz. [TSN dated April 9, 2003]
EMMANUEL
ENRIQUEZ BARCENA was the Assistant
Vice President for Operations of the PCHC during the time material in these
cases. He assisted the Vice President
for Operations, Arturo M. De Castro, in supervising the check processing
operations of the corporation; he made sure that the checks delivered by the
banks were credited to the clearing account with the Bangko Sentral ng
Pilipinas (BSP) and correspondingly debited to the accounts of the drawee
banks; and he was also responsible for the accuracy of the reports generated
and furnished to the “clearing participants” and BSP to the delivery of checks
by the banks. The witness related that
the clearing participants are the commercial and thrift bank members of the
corporation with authority from the BSP to accept demand deposits and participate
in the clearing operations. These banks
send local checks to the clearing house by batches and the clearing house
receive these checks and feed the same in a reader sorter which capture the
drawee bank’s information. Thereafter,
the checks are “sprayed with a tracer bond” and “microfilmed” to identify the
source of the check. The checks are then
tallied against the batch control ticket and the net results, known as the
“clearing summary report”, are reported to the BSP to serve as basis “for debiting
or crediting the clearing account” of the bank concerned.
The
witness then related and identified several checks which were sent to PCHC and
undergone the clearing process. He was
particular with the signatures of Arturo De Castro, the Vice President of PCHC,
Francisco Gementiza, the Microfilm Custodian of PCHC, and Edgar Gamboa, the
Assistant of the Microfilm Custodian of PCHC.
These checks were Allied Bank Check No. 0176610 with the amount of P5
Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0176611 with the amount of P10 Million; Westmont
Bank Check No. 0187473 with the amount of P25 Million; Urban Bank Check No.
037661 dated November 23, 1999 with the amount of P54,161,496.52; Far East Bank
Gift Check with the amount of P500,000.00; Allied Bank Check No. 0176621 with
the amount of P10 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0176620 dated December 20,
1999 with the amount of P10 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0176622 dated
December 20, 1999 with the amount of P5 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0176619
dated December 20, 1999 with the amount of P5 Million; UCPB Check No. 018706
dated December 28, 1999 with the amount of P20 Million; UCPB Check No. 018707
dated December 28, 1999 with the amount of P20 Million; FEBTC Check No. 0580312
dated May 8, 2000 with the amount of P3 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0209702
dated May 2, 2000 with the amount of P10 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0209706
dated May 2, 2000 with the amount of P5 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0209703
dated May 2, 2000 with the amount of P5 Million; Metrobank Check No. 0830000304
dated June 3, 2000 with the amount of P22,945,000.00; Metrobank Check No.
3010003358 dated June 6, 2000 with the amount of P20 Million; Asian Bank Check
No. 0022012 dated November 5, 1999 with the amount of 20 Million; Urban Bank Check
No. 034181 dated November 8, 1999 with the amount of P10,875,749.43; Urban Bank
Check No. 034182 dated November 8, 1999 with the amount of P42,716,554.22;
Allied Bank Check No. 0176604 dated September 30, 1999 with the amount of P10
Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0176601 dated September 30, 1999 with the amount
of P10 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0176602 dated September 30, 1999 with the
amount of P10 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0176605 dated September 30, 1999
with the amount of P10 Million; Metrobank Check No. 0660139670 dated October
18, 1999 with the amount of P30 Million; Metrobank Check No. 0660139681 dated
October 18, 1999 with the amount of P13 Million; Metrobank Check No. 0732114979
dated October 15, 1999 with the amount of P10 Million; Global Bank Check No.
0107387 dated October 18, 1999 with the amount of P25 Million; Global Bank
Check No. 0107388 dated October 18, 1999 with the amount of P25 Million;
Metrobank Check No. 0385384 dated November 24, 1999 with the amount of P10
Million; Metrobank Check No. 0385385 dated November 24, 1999 with the amount of
P5 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0176615 dated November 24, 1999 with the
amount of P5 Million; Equitable PCI Bank Check No. 0783278 dated December 17,
1999 with the amount of P160 Million; Equitable PCI Bank Check No. 0783284
dated December 20, 1999 with the amount of P2 Million; Equitable PCI Bank Check
No. 0783282 dated December 20, 1999 with the amount of P1.5 Million; Allied
Bank Check No. 080519 dated December 20, 1999 with the amount of P5 Million;
Equitable PCI Bank Check No. 006975 dated December 24, 1999 with the amount of
P1.5 Million; Westmont Bank Check No. 0189619 dated December 23, 1999; PS Bank
Check No. 031436 dated October 18, 1999 with the amount of P20 Million; PS Bank
Check No. 031437 dated October 18, 1999 with the amount of P20 Million;
Security Bank Check No. 0363859 dated October 18, 1999 with the amount of P20
Million; Security Bank Check No. 0363858 dated October 18, 1999 with the amount
of P10 Million; Security Bank Check No. 0363857 dated October 18, 1999 with the
amount of P20 Million; PS Bank Check No. 031438 dated October 18, 1999 with the
amount of P10 Million; Global Bank Check No. 0107385 dated October 18, 1999
with the amount of P20 Million; Global Bank Check No. 0107383 dated October 18,
1999 with the amount of P30 Million; Westmont Bank Check No. 0187472 dated
October 26, 1999 with the amount of P5 Million; Westmont Bank Check No. 0187471
dated October 26, 1999 with the amount of P5 Million.
Witness Barcena then related and identified in the
foregoing manner Equitable PCI Bank Check No. 0783236 dated December 17, 1999
with the amount of P50 Million; Equitable PCI Bank Check No. 0111-795117 dated
January 6, 2000 with the amount of P20 Million; Bank of Commerce Check No.
0030474 dated January 10, 2000 with the amount of P6,925,055.65; Urban Bank
Check No. 039975 dated January 18, 2000 with the amount of P70 Million; Urban
Bank Check No. 039976 dated January 18, 2000 with the amount of P2 Million;
Urban Bank Check No. 039977 dated January 18, 2000 with the amount of P2
Million; Urban Bank Check No. 039978 dated January 18, 2000 with the amount of
P1 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0080566 dated August 31, 1999 with the amount
of P10 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0080454 dated August 31, 1999 with the
amount of P10 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0080548 dated August 31, 1999 with
the amount of P10 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0080542 dated August 31, 1999
with the amount of P10 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0080543 dated August 31,
1999 with the amount of P10 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0080547 dated August
31, 1999 with the amount of P5 Million; Allied Bank Check No. 0080544 dated
August 31, 1999 with the amount of P5 Million; Westmont Bank Check No. 00181135
dated August 31, 1999 with the amount of P5 Million; Metrobank Check No.
0091780568 dated September 1, 1999 with the amount of P5 Million; and FBTC
Check No. 3165582 dated September 8, 1999 with the amount of P20 Million.
In another set of documentary evidence for the
prosecution, the witness similarly related and identified Equitable PCI Bank
Check No. 0811277 dated September 26, 1999 with the amount of P8,300,000.00;
Allied Bank Check No. 0080550 dated September 15, 1999 with the amount of P20
Million; Equitable PCI Bank Check No. 001331 dated September 30, 1999 with the
amount of P300 Million; Equitable PCI Bank Check No. 0811579 dated November 23,
1999 with the amount of P20 Million; Equitable Bank Check No. 0811580 dated
November 23, 1999 with the amount of P20 Million; Equitable PCI Bank Check No.
0811582 dated November 23, 1999 with the amount of P60 Million; Westmont Bank
Check No. 0187474 dated November 27, 1999 with the amount of P25 Million;
Metrobank Check No. 0385400 dated November 29, 1999 with the amount of P53
Million; Equitable PCI Bank Check No. 0811596 dated December 15, 1999 with the
amount of P50 Million; Equitable PCI Bank Check No. 0811597 dated December 1,
1999 with the amount of P50 Million; and Allied Bank Check No. 0176625 dated
December 1, 1999 with the amount of P20 Million.
Witness Barcena continued on his direct examination
and related and identified FEBTC Check No. 3165579 dated November 8, 1999 with
the amount of P189,700,000.00; BPI Family Bank Check No. 0006623 dated July 25,
2000 with the amount of P40 Million; Equitable PCI Bank Check No. 0742099 dated
August 15, 1999 with the amount of P10 Million; Metrobank Check No. 0091780523
dated August 15, 1999 with the amount of P31 Million; Metrobank Check No.
0385379 dated August 19, 1999 with the amount of P20 Million; Metrobank Check
No. 0830416015 dated July 29, 2000 with the amount of P22 Million; and Allied
Bank Check No. 0080549 dated August 25, 1999 with the amount of P20 Million.
Lastly, the witness then presented and identified a
Detail List dated November 9, 1999 of PCHC which contained a listing of
incoming checks of the participating bank in Greater Manila Area.
On cross examination, witness Barcena clarified that
the checks forwarded to PCHC pertained to checks that were not yet acted by the
drawee bank as to whether the same were honored or dishonored. [TSN dated
January 13, 2003; TSN dated January 15, 2003; and TSN dated January 20, 2003]
EVIDENCE
FOR THE DEFENSE
The defense presented BEATRIZ LEGASPI BAGSIT, the Vice President and Division Head in the
FINDINGS
OF FACT
Re: Sub-paragraph
(d) of the Amended Information
To reiterate,
the crime of plunder is committed through a combination or series of overt or
criminal acts [or “predicate acts”] described in Section 1 (d) of R.A. No. 7080
as amended. The prosecution presented overwhelming evidence that there were
numerous deposits of astoundingly large sums of money into the Jose Velarde
account. However, the prosecution failed to prove the predicate act/s as
defined under Section 1(d) of R.A. No. 7080 through which the said deposits
could have been acquired or amassed, except for the amount of P189,700,000.00,
representing illegal commissions from the sales of Belle shares and the money
collected from illegal gambling. It is not per se the accumulation of wealth
which is proscribed by the Anti-Plunder Law. The acquisition of wealth of not
less than P50,000,000.00 must be linked to the commission of overt or criminal
acts falling within the ambit of the said law. All that the prosecution has
succeeded in showing is that the Jose Velarde account is the repository or
receptacle of vast wealth belonging to FPres. Estrada.
RULING OF THE COURT
ON THE CHARGE OF PLUNDER
Elements
of the Offense of Plunder
Having
reached the foregoing Findings of Fact after a meticulous and laborious study
of the voluminous testimonial and documentary evidence of both the prosecution
and the defense on the four (4) sub-paragraphs of the Amended Information, the
Court is now called upon to apply the Anti-Plunder Law to the facts of this
case. The accused are charged with plunder as defined and penalized under Republic
Act No. 7080, as amended, entitled “An Act Defining And Penalizing The Crime Of
Plunder, As Amended” (July 12, 1991). Particularly,
Section 2 of the said law provides as follows:
Section 2. Definition of the Crime of Plunder; Penalties.- Any public officer
who, by himself or in connivance with members of his family, relatives by
affinity or consanguinity, business associates, subordinates or other persons,
amasses, accumulates or acquires ill
gotten-wealth through a combination or series of overt criminal acts as
described in Section 1 (d) hereof in the aggregate amount or total value of at
least Fifty Million Pesos (P50,000,000.00) shall be guilty of the crime of
plunder and shall be punished by reclusion perpetua to death. Any person who participated with the said
public officer in the commission of an offense contributing to the crime of
plunder shall likewise be punished for such offense. In the imposition of
penalties, the degree of participation and the attendance of mitigating and
extenuating circumstances, as provided by the Revised Penal Code, shall be
considered by the court. The Court shall declare any and ill-gotten wealth and
their interests and other incomes and assets including the properties and share
of stocks derived from the deposit or investment thereof forfeited in the favor
of the State. (As to the penalty, this section is amended by Republic Act No.
9346 prohibiting the imposition of the death penalty in the
Section 1 (d) of the same statute cited
in Section 2 above reads:
d)
Ill-gotten wealth means any asset, property, business enterprise or material
possession of any person within the purview of Section Two (2) hereof, acquired
by him directly or in directly through dummies, nominees, agents, subordinates
and/or business associates by any combination or series of the following
means or similar schemes:
1)
Through misappropriation, conversation, mis-use, or malversation of public funds or raids on the public
treasury;
2)
By receiving, directly or indirectly, any commission, gift, share, percentage,
kickbacks or any other form of pecuniary benefit from any person and/ or entity
in connection with any government contract or project or by reason of the
office or position of the public officer concerned;
3)
By the illegal or fraudulent conveyance or disposition of asset belonging to
the National Government or any of its
subdivision, agencies or instrumentalities or government-owned or
–controlled corporations and their
subsidiaries;
4)
By obtaining, receiving or accepting directly or indirectly any shares of
stock, equity or any other form of interest or participation including promises of future employment in any business
enterprise or undertaking;
5)
By establishing agricultural, industrial or commercial monopolies or other
combinations and/or implementation of decrees and orders intended to benefit
particular persons or special interests; or
6)
By taking undue advantage of official position, authority, relationship,
connection or influence to unjustly enrich himself or themselves at the expense
and to the damage and prejudice of the Filipino people and the Republic of the
RA
No. 7080, as amended, enunciates a rule of evidence in Section 4 thereof which
is quoted hereunder:
Section 4. Rule of Evidence. – For
purpose of establishing the crime of plunder, it shall not be necessary to
prove each and every criminal act done by the accused in furtherance of the
scheme or conspiracy to amass, accumulate or acquire ill-gotten wealth, it
being sufficient to establish beyond reasonable doubt a pattern of overt or
criminal acts indicative of the overall unlawful scheme or conspiracy.
The case of Joseph
Ejercito Estrada v. Sandiganbayan (G.R. No. 148560, promulgated November
19, 2001), which upheld this Court’s Resolution dated July 9, 2001 denying
accused Former President Estrada’s Motion to Quash the information in this
case, enumerates the elements of the crime of plunder, as follows:
(1) That
the offender is a public officer who acts by himself or in connivance with
members of his family, relatives by affinity or consanguinity, business
associates, subordinates or other persons;
(2) That he amassed, accumulated or acquired ill-gotten wealth
through a combination or series of the following overt or criminal acts
described in Section 1 (d) of R.A. No. 7080 as amended; and
(3) That the aggregate amount or total value of the ill-gotten
wealth amassed, accumulated or acquired is at least P50,000,000.00.
The
terms “Combination” and “Series” were likewise defined in the above-cited case
as follows:
Thus
when the Plunder Law speaks of “combination,”
it is referring to at least two (2) acts falling under different categories of
enumeration provided in Sec. 1, par. (d), e.g., raids on the public treasury in
Sec.1, par. (d), subpar. (1), and fraudulent conveyance of assets belongings to
the National Government under Sec.1, par. (d), subpar. (3).
On the other hand, to constitute a “series”, there must be two (2) or more
overt or criminal acts falling under the same category of enumeration found in
Sec. 1, par. (d), say, misappropriation , malversation and raids on the public
treasury, all of which fall under Sec. 1, par. (d), subpar. (1). Verily, had
the legislature intended a technical or distinctive meaning for “combination”
and “series,” it would have taken greater pains in specifically providing for
it in the law. (emphasis supplied)
The
Charges in the Amended Information
in
Relation to Accused
The import of the charges in the Amended Information
was carefully discussed by the Honorable Supreme Court in the case of Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada vs. Sandiganbayan
[G.R. No. 148965, February 26, 2003, 377 SCRA 538, 553-556], as penned by now
the Honorable Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno, in this wise:
For better focus, there
is a need to examine again the allegations of the Amended Information vis-à-vis
the provisions of R.A. No. 7080.
The Amended Information,
in its first two paragraphs, charges petitioner and his other co-accused with
the crime of plunder. The first
paragraph names all the accused, while the second paragraph describes in
general how plunder was committed and
lays down most of the elements of the crime itself. Sub-paragraphs (a) to (d) describe in
detail the predicate acts that constitute the crime and name in particular the
co-conspirators of former President Estrada in each predicate act. The predicate acts alleged in the said four
sub-paragraphs correspond to the items enumerated in Section 1 (d) of R.A. No.
7080. Sub-paragraph (a) alleged the
predicate act of receiving, on several instances, money from illegal gambling,
in consideration of toleration or protection of illegal gambling, and expressly
names petitioner as one of those who conspired with former President Estrada in
committing the offense. This predicate
act corresponds with the offense described in item [2] of the enumeration in
Section 1 (d) of R.A. No. 7080.
Sub-paragraph (b) alleged the predicate act of diverting, receiving or
misappropriating a portion of the tobacco excise tax share allocated for the
From the foregoing
allegations of the Amended Information, it is clear that all the accused named
in sub-paragraphs (a) to (d), thru their individual acts, conspired with
former President Estrada to enable the latter to amass, accumulate or
acquire ill-gotten wealth in the aggregate amount of P4,097,804,173.17. As the Amended Information is worded,
however, it is not certain whether the accused in sub-paragraphs (a) to (d) conspired
with each other to enable the former President to amass the subject
ill-gotten wealth. In light of this lack
of clarity, petitioner cannot be penalized for the conspiracy entered into by
the other accused with the former President as related in the second paragraph
of the Amended Information in relation to its sub-paragraphs (b) to (d). We hold that petitioner can be held
accountable only for the predicate acts he allegedly committed as
related in sub-paragraph (a) of the Amended Information which were allegedly
done in conspiracy with the former President whose design was to amass
ill-gotten wealth amounting to more than P4 billion.
We hasten to add, however, that the
respondent Ombudsman cannot be faulted for including the predicate acts alleged
in sub-paragraphs (a) to (d) of the Amended Information in one, and not in
four, separate Informations. A study of the history of R.A. No. 7080 will show
that the law was crafted to avoid the mischief and folly of filing multiple
informations. The Anti-Plunder Law wasenacted in the aftermath of the Marcos
regimewhere charges of ill-gotten wealth were filed against former President
Marcos and his alleged cronies. Government prosecutors found no appropriate law
to deal with he multitude and magnitude of the acts allegedly committed by the
former President to acquire illegal wealth.They also found out that under the
then existing laws such as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, the
Revised Penal Code and other special laws, the acts involved different
transactions, different time and different personalities.Every transaction
constituted a separate crime and required a separate case and the over-all
conspiracyhad to be broken down into several criminal and graft charges. The
preparation of multiple Informations was a legl nightmarebut eventually,
thirty-nine (39) separate and independent cases were filed against practically
the same accused before the Sandiganbayan. R.A. No. 7080 or the Anti Plunder
Law was enacted precisely to address this procedural problem. This is pellucid
in the Explanatory Note to Senate Bill No. 733…
xxx xxx xxx
. . . In the case at bar, the different accused
and their different criminal acts have a commonality—to help the former
President amass, accumulate or acquire ill-gotten wealth. Sub-paragraphs (a) to (d) in the Amended
Information alleged the different participation of each accused in the
conspiracy. The gravamen of the
conspiracy charge, therefore, is not that each accused agreed to
receive protection money from illegal gambling, that each misappropriated a
portion of the tobacco excise tax, that each accused ordered the GSIS and SSS
to purchase shares of Belle Corporation and receive commissions from such sale,
nor that each unjustly enriched himself from commissions, gifts and kickbacks; rather,
it is that each of them, by their individual acts, agreed to participate,
directly or indirectly, in the amassing, accumulation and acquisition of
ill-gotten wealth of and/or for former President Estrada.
In the American jurisdiction, the presence of several accused in multiple
conspiracies commonly involves two structures: (1) the so-called “wheel” or
“circle” conspiracy, in which there is a single person or group (the “hub”)
dealing individually with two or more other persons or groups (the “spokes”);
and (2) the “chain” conspiracy, usually involving the distribution of narcotics
or other contraband, in which there is successive communication and cooperation
in much the same way as with legitimate business operations between
manufacturer and wholesaler, then wholesaler and retailer, and then retailer
and consumer.
From a reading of the
Amended Information, the case at bar appears similar to a “wheel”
conspiracy. The hub is former President
Estrada while the spokes are all the accused, and the rim that encloses the
spokes is the common goal in the overall conspiracy, i.e., the amassing,
accumulation and acquisition of ill-gotten wealth.
Throughout
the trial before this Court, the prosecution’s task was to establish, with the
required burden of proof, the commission of the crime of plunder by the
principal accused former President
Joseph Ejercito Estrada in conspiracy with his co-accused “during the period
from June, 1998 to January, 2001” by “
willfully, unlawfully and criminally” amassing, accumulating and acquiring by
himself directly or indirectly ill-gotten wealth in the aggregate amount of
Four Billion Ninety Seven Million Eight Hundred Four Thousand One Hundred
Seventy-Three Pesos and Seventeen Centavos ( P4,097,804,173.17), more or less
and thereby unjustly enriching himself or themselves at the expense and to the
damage of the Filipino people and the Republic of the Philippines, through “ANY
OR A COMBINATION OR A SERIES OF OVERT CRIMINAL ACTS, OR SIMILAR SCHEMES OR
MEANS” described in paragraphs (a) to (d) in the Amended Information.
After a thorough evaluation of the
established facts, we hold that the prosecution has proven beyond reasonable
doubt the elements of plunder as follows:
(a) The principal accused Joseph Ejercito Estrada, at the
time of the commission of the acts charged in the Amended Information was the
President of the Republic of the
(b) He acted in connivance with then Governor Luis
“Chavit” Singson, who was granted immunity from suit by the Office of the
Ombudsman, and with the participation of other persons named by prosecution
witnesses in the course of the trial of this case, in amassing, accumulating
and acquiring ill-gotten wealth as follows:
(i) by a series of acts of receiving
bi-monthly collections from “jueteng”, a form of illegal gambling, during the
period beginning November 1998 to August 2000 in the aggregate amount of Five
Hundred Forty Five Millionh Two Hundred Ninety One Thousand Pesos
(P545,291,000.00), Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00) of which was
deposited in the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation; and
(ii) by a series consisting of two
(2) acts of ordering the GSIS and the SSS to purchase shares of stock of Belle
Corporation and collecting or receiving commission from the sales of Belle
Shares in the amount of One Hundred Eighty Nine Million Seven Hundred Thousand
Pesos (P189,700,000.00) which was deposited in the Jose Velarde account.
In Jose “Jinggoy” E. Estrada v. Sandiganbayan (G.R. No. 148965,
February 26, 2002, 377 SCRA 538, 549) the Supreme Court ruled as follows:
Contrary to petitioner’s posture, the allegation is that
he received or collected money from illegal gambling "on several
instances.” The phrase “on several instances” means the petitioner committed
the predicate act in series. To insist that the Amended Information charged the
petitioner with the commission of only one act or offense despite the phrase
“several instances” is to indulge in a twisted, nay, “pretzel” interpretation.
In the same case (Jose “Jinggoy” E. Estrada v. Sandiganbayan,
supra.), it was held:
…Sub-paragraph (c) alleged
two predicate acts—that of ordering the Government Service Insurance System
(GSIS) and the Social Security System (SSS) to purchase shares of stock of
Belle Corporation, and collecting or receiving commissions from such purchase
from Belle Corporation which became part of the deposit in the “Jose Velarde”
account at the Equitable PCI Bank. These two predicate acts fall under items
[2] and [3] in the enumeration of R.A. No. 7080, and was allegedly committed by
the former President in connivance with John Does and Jane Does. (emphasis
supplied)
This Court finds that the prosecution failed to prove, beyond reasonable
doubt, who among the accused benefited from the misappropriation of the excise
tax share of Ilocos Sur and in what amounts, as charged sub-paragraph b. The
prosecution likewise failed to offer evidence on the alleged illegal sources of
the numerous deposits in the Jose Velarde account which belongs to FPres.
Estrada, except for the commission received from the sale of Belle shares to
GSIS and SSS and the money collected from illegal gambling. The Anti-Plunder
Law requires the prosecution to prove the series or combination of overt or
criminal acts through which ill-gotten wealth deposited in the Jose Velarde account was
amassed, accumulated or acquired. The prosecution failed to discharge this
burden of proof.
However, the two different series of predicate acts outlined above
(particularly, first, the regular and methodical acquisition of ill-gotten
wealth through collections from illegal gambling and second, the receipt of
unlawful commissions from the sales of Belle shares twice), whether taken
separately or independently of the other or in combination with each other,
unquestionably constitute the crime of plunder as defined by Section 2, in
relation to Section 1(d) of RA 7080 as amended.
The case of Estrada v.
Sandiganbayan (G.R. No. 148560,
xxx As Senate President Salonga explained, of there are
150 constitutive crimes charged, it is not necessary to prove beyond reasonable
doubt all of them. If a pattern can be shown by proving for example, 10
criminal acts, then that would be sufficient to secure conviction.
The State is thereby enabled by this device to deal with
several acts constituting separate crimes as just one crime of plunder by
allowing their prosecution by means of a single information because there is a
common purpose for committing them, namely, that of “amassing, accumulating or
acquiring wealth through such overt or criminal acts.” The pattern is the
organizing principle that defines what otherwise would be discreet criminal
acts into the single crime of plunder. (369 SCRA 394, 475-476)
A pattern was established by the
carefully planned system of jueteng money collection on a regular bi-monthly
basis from the dfferent provinces nationwide to enrich FPres. Estrada with the connivance
and/or participation of Gov. Singson, Yolanda Ricaforte, Emma Lim, Carmencita
Itchon, SPO2 Artates, Jamis Singson and other jueteng collectors referred to in
the Amended Information as “John Does” and “Jane Does.” The Court notes that Gov.
Singson in the course of his testimony mentioned certain persons who collected
jueteng money aside from himself and his employees; namely, Anton Prieto,
Bonito Singson, Bong Pineda, Charing Magbuhos, Celso de
It is unnecessary to indulge in an
exposition of whether the two series of acts falling under sub-paragraphs (a)
and (c) of the Amended Information, proven in the course of the trial could
have amounted to two (2) counts of plunder. It would be a purely academic
exercise, as the accused cannot be convicted of two offenses or two counts of
plunder on the basis of a single Information, clearly charging him of only one count
of plunder, because that would violate his constitutional rights to due
process, given the severity of the crime charged in this case.
The predicate acts
alleged in sub-paragraphs (a) and (c) of the Amended Information, which formed
two (2) separate series of acts of a different nature, were linked by the fact
that they were plainly geared towards a common goal which was the accumulation
of ill-gotten wealth for FPres. Estrada and that they shared a pattern or a
common method of commission which was the abuse or misuse of the high authority
or power of the Presidency. (
In sum, the Court finds
that prosecution has proven beyond reasonable doubt the commission by the
principal accused former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada of the crime of plunder
but not so in the case of former Mayor Jose Jinggoy Estrada and Atty. Edward
Serapio.
WHEREFORE,
in view of all the foregoing, judgment is hereby rendered in Criminal Case No.
26558 finding the accused, Former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada, GUILTY
beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of PLUNDER defined in and penalized
by Republic Act No. 7080, as amended. On
the other hand, for failure of the prosecution to prove and establish their
guilt beyond reasonable doubt, the Court finds the accused Jose “Jinggoy”
Estrada and Atty. Edward S. Serapio NOT GUILTY of the crime of plunder,
and accordingly, the Court hereby orders their ACQUITTAL.
The penalty imposable for the crime of plunder under
Republic Act No. 7080, as amended by Republic Act No. 7659, is Reclusion
Perpetua to Death. There being no
aggravating or mitigating circumstances, however, the lesser penalty shall be
applied in accordance with Article 63 of the Revised Penal Code. Accordingly, accused Former President Joseph
Ejercito Estrada is hereby sentenced to suffer the penalty of Reclusion
Perpetua and the accessory penalties of civil interdiction during the
period of sentence and perpetual absolute disqualification.
The period
within which accused Former President Joseph Ejercito Estrada has been under
detention shall be credited to him in full as long as he agrees voluntarily in
writing to abide by the same disciplinary rules imposed upon convicted
prisoners.
Moreover, in
accordance with Section 2 of Republic Act No. 7080, as amended by Republic Act
No. 7659, the Court hereby declares the forfeiture in favor of the government
of the following:
(1) The total amount of Five Hundred Forty Two Million Seven
Hundred Ninety One Thousand Pesos (P545,291,000.00), with interest and income
earned, inclusive of the amount of Two Hundred Million Pesos (P200,000,000.00),
deposited in the name and account of the Erap Muslim Youth Foundation.
(2) The amount of One Hundred Eighty Nine Million Pesos
(P189,000,000.00), inclusive of interests and income earned, deposited in the Jose Velarde account.
(3) The real property consisting of a house and lot dubbed as “
The cash bonds posted by accused Jose “Jinggoy”
Estrada and Atty. Edward S. Serapio are hereby ordered cancelled and released
to the said accused or their duly authorized representatives upon presentation
of the original receipt evidencing payment thereof and subject to the usual
accounting and auditing procedures. Likewise, the hold-departure orders
issued against the said accused are hereby recalled and declared functus
oficio.
SO ORDERED.
SGD.
TERESITA J. LEONARDO-DE CASTRO
Presiding Justice
Chairperson
SGD.
SGD.
FRANCISCO H. VILLARUZ, JR. DIOSDADO
M. PERALTA
Associate
Justice Associate Justice
ATTESTATION
I attest that the conclusions in the
above Decision were reached in consultation before the case was assigned to the
writer of the opinion of the Court’s Division.
SGD.
TERESITA J. LEONARDO-DE CASTRO
Presiding Justice
Chairperson
CERTIFICATION
Pursuant to Article VIII, Section
13, of the Constitution, and the Division Chairman’s Attestation, it is hereby
certified that the conclusions in the above Decision were reached in
consultation before the case was assigned to the writer of the opinion of the
Court’s Division.
SGD.
TERESITA J. LEONARDO-DE
CASTRO
Presiding Justice