Ex-Maguindanao mayor absolved of two counts of perjury involving SALN

The Sandiganbayan has acquitted, due to reasonable doubt, a former mayor of Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao of two counts of perjury in connection with allegedly faulty entries in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Networth (SALN) in 2011 and 2012.

In a 19-page decision dated November 22, the anti-graft court said that Lester Seismundo Sinsuat’s alleged undeclared properties in 2011 and 2012 were in fact declared, albeit under a different classification.

The Sandiganbayan gave credence to Sinsuat’s defense that his real property in Awang, Datu Odin Sinsuat under Transfer Certificate of Title No. T-37110 was declared in his 2011 SALN, only that it was classified as residential instead of commercial since the property had just been recently converted to commercial at the time.

Likewise, the anti-graft court also accepted Sinsuat’s argument that the former mayor’s property in Datu Odin Sinsuat under Transfer Certificate of Title No. T-38860 was declared in his 2012 SALN, even if it was not specified that this property was located in Capiton, Datu Odin Sinsuat.

“Perjury requires a clear and convincing evidence of accused’s willful and deliberate assertion of falsehood. The prosecution cannot simply rely on the weakness of the defense, but rather on the strength of its own evidence which, in this case, is nil,” the Sandiganbayan said.

The Sandiganbayan then cited that government investigators also testified before the anti-graft court that they did not go beyond the documents presented, did not conduct a trace back of the titles nor visited the locations of the subject properties.

“Where there is no moral certainty as to their guilt, they must be acquitted even though their innocence may be questionable. The constitutional right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty can be overthrown only by proof beyond a reasonable doubt,” the Sandiganbayan said.

In closing, the court said that the evidence for perjury should be airtight, considering that being convicted of the said crime would mean incarceration of six months to two years.

“Such punishment is not a joke. Incarcerating an accused where the prosecution fell short in proving his guilt beyond reasonable doubt would be the height of injustice,” the Sandiganbayan said.

“Having failed to discharge the burden of proof to establish the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt, this court is constrained, as is its bounden duty, to acquit the accused,” the court added. — BM, GMA News