Raps filed vs. entrapped CH worker

Criminal and administrative charges have rained on the City Hall official earlier entrapped by the National Bureau of Investigation for demanding exorbitant amount in the issuance of a tax declaration.

The NBI has filed three charges against Engracio Lumangtad before the Office of the Ombudsman Visayas. The charges include robbery/extortion as penalized under Article 294 of the Revised Penal Code, violations of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and R.A. 6713 otherwise known as the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees.

Lumangtad, 54, chief of the land appraisal division of the City Assessor’s Office, was caught by the NBI operatives last Tuesday noon in the act of receiving the P45,000 he allegedly demanded from Francisco Bontuyan in barangay Talamban.

Bontuyan said that Lumangtad demanded P50,000 from him for the issuance of the tax declaration of the 2,000-square-meter property of his mother in Pit-os. He said that it was the second time that Lumangtad demanded exorbitant amount from him for the issuance of a tax declaration of his mother’s property.

According to Bontuyan, he had previously given P80,000 to Lumangtad in September last year for the issuance of a tax declaration of the 796-sq.-m. property of his mother in Pit-os.

Bontuyan said he made a personal follow-up of his mother’s application because it has been pending since 2006. Lumangtad allegedly told him that the application will not be approved because the property applied for is “being considered as a barangay road.”

But Lumangtad reportedly offered to resolve the problem in exchange for P100,000. The complainant said he haggled for P80,000.

Sometime in January, Bontuyan said his mother applied for a separate tax declaration of another lot also in Pit-os. Bontuyan said he and his daughter went to the City Hall to make a follow-up on the application. However, when his daughter made the follow-up, the latter was allegedly told by Lumangtad that he already had an agreement with her father.

Bontuyan said he immediately confronted Lumangtad about it. The suspect again told him that it is difficult to process the application but he can fix everything for P50,000. Bontuyan said he came back to the City Hall last February 11 to tell Lumangtad not to process the application anymore as he had not raised the amount demanded by him.

But Lumangtad allegedly lowered the demand to P45,000 provided that he will make a down payment of half of said amount  claiming that other personnel in the office are already aware of it prompting him to seek the assistance of the NBI.

Bontuyan said he found out that the actual amount paid to the city government for the issuance of the tax declaration was less than P500.

Lumangtad denied demanding money from Bontuyan saying what was given to him was only a “token”. — Fred P. Languido/MEEV