PEOPLE v. DELOS REYES

PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, Plaintiff-Appellee vs. MERCEDITAS MATHEUS DELOS REYES, Accused-Appellant

G.R. No. 198795 

June 7, 2017 

FACTS: 

Accused-appellant was charged with six counts of Estafa under Article 315 (2) of the Revised Penal Code (RPC) and one count of Large Scale Illegal Recruitment under RA 8042, based on the affidavit-complaints made by the following: Thelma N. Suratos; Glenda R. Guillarte; Merly 0. Alayon; Celso J. Bagay, Jr.; Rogelio Duldulao; and Doriza P. Gloria. 

 That on or about the period comprised from February 19, 2003 to February 26, 2003, in Quezon City, Philippines, the said accused conspiring together, personal circumstances have not as yet been ascertained and mutually helping each other, did, then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously defraud THELMA SURATOS y NARAG, in the following manner, to wit: the said accused, by means of false manifestations and fraudulent representation which they made to Thelma Suratos to the effect that they had the power and capacity to recruit and employ Thelma Suratos for employment abroad, and could facilitate the processing of the pertinent papers if given the necessary amount to meet the requirements thereto, and by means of other similar deceits, induced and succeeded in inducing said Thelma Suratos to give and deliver, as in fact gave and delivered to said accused the amount of P55,000.00, Philippine Currency, on the strength of said manifestations and representations, said accused well knowing that the same were false and fraudulent and were made solely to obtain, as in fact they did obtain the amount of ₱55,000.00, which amount once in possession, with intent to defraud Thelma Suratos willfully, unlawfully and feloniously misappropriated, misapplied and converted to their own personal use and benefit, to the damage and prejudice of said Thelma Suratos y Narag in the aforesaid amount of ₱55,000.00 Philippine Currency. 

That on or about the period comprised from January 31, 2003 to June 18, 2003, in Quezon City, Philippines, the said accused conspiring together, confederating with another person whose true name, identity and personal circumstances have not as yet been ascertained and mutually helping each other, by representing themselves to have the capacity to contract enlist and recruit workers for employment abroad, did, then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously for a fee, recruit and promise employment/job placement abroad to THELMA SURATOS y NARAG; GLENDA GUILLARTE y RONDILLA; MERLY ALAYON y ORO; CELSO BAGAY JORGE, JR.; DORIZA GLORIA y PUJEDA; and ROGELIO DULDULAO y LE, without first securing the required license and authority from the Department of Labor and Employment, in violation of said law. Each made their complaints which made Merceditas in grave liability. On November 26, 2008, the RTC rendered its Decision, convicting accused-appellant of the crime of large scale illegal recruitment and five counts of estafa. The complaint docketed as Criminal Case No. Q-03- 119667 filed by Doriza P. Gloria (Gloria), however, it was dismissed due to Gloria's failure to testify and the prosecution's failure to prove appellant's guilt for the crime of estafa. 

ISSUE: 

WHETHER OR NOT the court a quo gravely erred in finding the accused guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crimes of illegal recruitment and estafa. 

HELD: 

YES. Illegal Recruitment in Large Scale – The offense of illegal recruitment in large scale has the following elements: (1) the person charged undertook any recruitment activity as defined under Section 6 of RA 8042; (2) accused did not have the license or the authority to lawfully engage in the recruitment of workers; and, (3) accused committed the same against three or more persons individually or as a group. These elements are obtaining in this case. 

First, the RTC found accused-appellant to have undertaken recruitment activity when she promised the private complainants overseas employment for a fee. This factual finding was affirmed by the CA. As consistently adhered to by this Court, the matter of assigning values to declarations on the witness stand is best and most competently performed by the trial judge, who had the unmatched opportunity to observe the witnesses and to assess their credibility by the various indicia available but not reflected on the record. And when his findings have been affirmed by the CA, these are generally binding and conclusive upon this Court. 

Second, the March 1, 2004 Certification issued by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration unmistakably reveals that the accused-appellant neither had a license nor authority to recruit workers for overseas employment. Notably, instead of assailing the certification, she admitted during the pre-trial that she did not have a license or authority to lawfully engage in recruitment and placement of workers. 

Third, it was established that there were five complainants, i.e., Suratos, Guillarte, Alayon, Bagay, Jr., and Duldulao. It must be noted, that both the RTC and the CA failed to award interest on the money judgment on the charge of five counts of estafa and one count of Illegal Recruitment in Large Scale. 

Following prevailing jurisprudence, the Court, therefore, imposes a legal interest at the rate of 6% per annum, from the time of demand, which shall be deemed as the same day the Informations were filed against appellant, until the amounts are fully paid. Merceditas Matheus y Delos Reyes is found GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt of five counts of Estafa and one count of Large Scale Illegal Recruitment under R.A. No. 8042, otherwise known as Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipino Act of 1995 is hereby AFFIRMED with MODIFICATION.