NBI-7 Regional Director Max Salvador shows samples of bogus personal bail bonds seized in an office in Cebu City. (CDN PHOTO/TONEE DESPOJO)
Even judges can be fooled.
Ten fake bail bond forms were found in a Cebu City office raided yesterday by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
On the basis of the documents, at least three judges had approved the temporary release of 10 persons accused of crimes ranging from child abuse to illegal drugs and illegal gambling.
“Nadadaya ang court dito. (The court was deceived),” said NBI-7 Regional Director Max Salvador.
He said the fradulent bail bond operations were “syndicated” and that fake documents had used the name of the Philippine Fire and Marine Insurance Corp., a legitimate Makati-based firm.
“They are operating nationwide. The NBI has recovered a lot of their fake documents during various raids.”
Salvador said he would consult the judges if the persons released through the dubious bail bonds are to be taken into custody once again since it is highly probable the accused would no longer show up in court for their trial.
The personal bail bonds were for bail amounts ranging from P20,000 to P200,000 but the serial numbers showed they were bogus.
Nobody was around when agents of the Anti-Fraud Division of the NBI central office in Manila and NBI-7 forced their way into a padlocked office in the Francesa Dawn Building in Capitol Site, Cebu City, just 25 meters from the NBI-7 regional office.
The NBI brought a search warrant issued by Judge Monique Quisumbing-Ignacio of the Regional Trial Court Branch 209 in Mandaluyong City.
WAKEUP CALL
The discovery is a “wake-up call for us judges to be careful in approving bonds,” said retired Judge Meinrado Paredes, one of three judges whose names were found on the documents.
“I think it would be better if judges alert the bonding companies and scrutinize whether they are accredited by the Supreme Court and are in good standing,” he told Cebu Daily News.
He explained that the clerks of court first examine bail bonds “on their face” before judges approve them.
“We can’t go beyond the face of the bond. If the bond is in order, then we grant it,” Paredes said.
Paredes, who retired from the bench last February, said the victims in this scam are the “accused, the clerks of court, and judges”.
He said the 10 accused released through fake bail bonds have to be arrested again.
“The bail bond issued to them is null and void. So they really have to be arrested and they shall also pay another bond,” said Paredes .
The two other judges who signed release orders based on the fake bail bonds are Manuel Patalinghug of RTC Branch 22 and James Stewart Ramon Himalaloan.
TEMPORARY LIBERTY
A person accused of a crime can put up a bail bond, which is a written promise to pay an amount to the court for his temporary liberty, so he can be released while awaiting resolution of his case.
Payment may be in cash or in the form of a surety bond from an insurance company which usually asks for property or real estate as guarantee.
The bond is signed by the accused or a representative of an insurance company.
Based on the documents, five persons facing illegal drug charges were released by the court.
The rest involved persons charged with attempted murder, theft, child abuse, illegal gambling and violation of the Anti-Violence Against Women and their children (VAWC) Act of 2004.
The two subjects of the search warrant —Anthony Espinosa and Larry Steven Dagal—were not around but a charge of falsification of public documents will be filed against them with the Cebu City Prosecutors Office.
NBI agents confiscated at least five computer units, typewriters and fake bail bonds.
Each offense carries a penalty of six months to six years in jail and a maximum fine of P5,000.
Espinosa and Dagal may have been tipped off in advance before the raid.
“Communication is so fast nowadays. In just a matters of seconds, anyone can receive a text message,” the NBI-7 regional director said.
Philippine Fire and Marine Insurance Corp., earlier sought the assistance of the NBI in Manila after learning that the company’s name was being misused in the scam.
A series of operations were conducted in different parts of the country since the persons misrepresenting the surety firm had offices in Manila, Bicol, Cebu, and Davao.
According to Salvador, authentic bail bonds of the company have a policy number up to 5,000 only. However, the numbers appearing on the fake bail bonds reached 30,000.
“We can easily say that the bail bonds we recovered are fake. Its contents may be the same with the original document but it’s fake,” he said.
Salvador advised those who want to seek the services of insurance companies to first verify with the Insurance Commission of the Philippines if the company is legitimate.
“Make sure that you’re dealing with a licensed insurance company,” he said.
Some persons accused of a crime can’t afford to pay their bail bond in cash. They seek out bail agents , usually surety bond companies, who collect a nonrefundable fee of 10 to 20 percent of the amount of the bail, to post a surety bond in court on their behalf.
If the person fails to appear during trial, the bail agent becomes liable to pay the full amount of bail to the court.
The court can also order the arrest of the accused for “jumping bail”
Under the Rules of Court, if the accused fails to appear as required, the bond shall be declared forfeited and the bondsmen has 30 days to produce the accused and show cause why judgment should not be rendered against them for the amount of their bond.