The Department of Justice (DOJ) has set for preliminary investigation hearing the syndicated estafa case filed by the Philippine Deposit Insurance Corporation (PDIC) against Celso delos Angeles, his son Martin Nicolo delos Angeles and 19 others on July 24.

The case alleged that the respondents conspired to siphon off funds of Rural Bank of Carmen in Cebu solicited from the public by way of deposits through fraudulent, anomalous, and irregular transactions.

Filed on March 11, 2009 with the DOJ, the complaint traced, through bank documents, the direct involvement of delos Angeles and officers of Legacy-related corporations in said transactions. The PDIC alleged that delos Angeles created 39 fictitious loans amounting to P16.85 million in RB Carmen, and diverted the proceeds to his son, Martin Nicolo, and to other Legacy related corporations. The 39 fictitious loans were erased from the books of RB Carmen after delos Angeles himself purchased the fictitious/simulated loans in consideration for the Calanggaman property, a 9.8 hectare island located in Calanggaman, Tinabilan, Palompon, Leyte.

The complaint further said that a month after delos Angeles assigned the Calanggaman property, RB Carmen was made to appear to have sold the Calanggaman property to EDIFICE Realty and Development Corporation for P32 million payable in 15 years. Records from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) disclosed that EDIFICE Realty and Development Corporation is 99% owned by Resource Providers and Manpower Services, Inc. while the remaining 1% is owned by delos Angeles and his family. Resource Providers and Manpower Services, Inc. is, in turn, 98.94 % owned by delos Angeles and the remaining 1.06% by his son, Martin Nicolo and nominee lawyers.

PDIC said that the alleged amortization payments by EDIFICE for the Calanggaman property were funded by the accounts of Legacy Motors, Inc. (LMI) and Fusion Capital Corporation (FCC), both Legacy related corporations, which accounts were later found to be funded with proceeds of motorcycle and investment loans which were also fictitious.

EDIFICE’s obligation with RB Carmen was found to have been fully discharged with the assignment of five properties located in Batangas but these properties were traced to another Legacy bank, the closed Dynamic Bank, which has a mortgage lien on these properties. The registered owners of the mortgaged properties denied having sold the properties in favor of respondents Rolando V. Mata, Judith I. Dionson, Mary Ann Biarcal, Cristina M. Metante and Warren Collamat. Later, the title of the Calanggaman property was said to have been transferred to EDIFICE for a measly sale amount of P1 million in October 2008.

Syndicated estafa is a non-bailable offense and is punishable with lifetime imprisonment.