The Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 65 of Tarlac City has denied the petition for bail of a former manager of a closed bank under receivership of the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) who was accused of qualified theft.

Judge Ma. Magdalena A. Balderama denied the petition for bail of Ana Marie de Leon, former manager of the closed First Provincial Bank located in Tarlac, because the evidence of guilt against the accused for the crime charged is strong.

In its complaint, the PDIC charged de Leon for violation of Article 310 of the Revised Penal Code. The PDIC alleged that de Leon withdrew an aggregate amount of P6.60 million without authorization from various depositors. Further, the Corporation alleged that de Leon unlawfully took the proceeds of the withdrawal transactions.

PDIC's complaint also stated that the unauthorized withdrawals were discovered by the depositors only when they filed their deposit insurance claims with the PDIC after the bank's closure. The depositors denied making withdrawal transactions from their deposits. They learned that the balances reflected in their passbooks were substantially lower than what were recorded in the books of the closed bank. Investigation disclosed that de Leon signed and approved said withdrawals.

In their Joint Affidavit dated October 9, 2012, the former cashiers of the closed First Provincial Bank attested that de Leon personally posted and transacted the withdrawals from the depositors' accounts. According to them, as the manager of the bank, de Leon had the password control of the savings system for tellers and the cashier.

Associate Prosecution Attorney II Liza C. Olinares said that de Leon exercised grave abuse of confidence with the intent to gain and to defraud the bank and recommended that the case be non-bailable.

The First Provincial Bank was ordered closed by the Monetary Board on April 19, 2012 and taken over by the PDIC on April 20, 2012.

The PDIC said that the denial of bail is a welcome development and a step towards ensuring that justice is served against the accused. The Corporation continues to pursue legal actions against bank officials and personnel who have been found to have engaged in unsafe and unsound banking practices. The PDIC is authorized to conduct investigations and file necessary cases against erring bank officials and unscrupulous individuals. The pursuit for justice against erring bank owners, officers and employees is an important undertaking of PDIC to protect the Deposit Insurance Fund, PDIC's funding source for payment of insured deposits, as well as to maintain financial stability.

* * * * *