Plaints vs. Aman with DOJ

CEBU, Philippines - Due to the number of complainants against the Aman Futures Group Philippines Inc., the complaints for syndicated estafa were filed before the office of the Department of Justice in Manila.

Cebu Provincial Prosecutor Jane Petralba said the advantage of filing complaints before their central office was to have a speedy disposition of complaints.

Earlier, DOJ Secretary Leila de Lima created a panel of prosecutors to attend to the victims of the pyramiding scam.

Petralba said if the complaints were filed before their office or another Prosecutor’s Office it would take time because in their level they have 60 days to resolve the complaint.

“As what I’ve known the complaints filed against the Aman Futures Group have foreign respondents, maybe they will sneak out,” she said, referring to the length of time in resolving the complaint.

She reiterated if complaints were filed before the DOJ it will be resolved in a span of 10 to 15 days.

Aside from the 60 days, she said their resolution is subject to a motion for reconsideration before their office and a petition for review before the DOJ.

“Unlike with the DOJ no petition for review,” she added.

For the issue of the clarificatory hearing, Petralba said this will be done if there were unclear issues. However, she averred that mostly in determining probable cause they usually rely on the documents and a clarificatory hearing is unlikely.

Meanwhile, Petralba said they are willing to accept complaints and willing to subscribe affidavits of complainants against the pyramiding scam.

However, she added that complaints involving the Aman Futures Group Philippines Inc. filed before their office will still be forwarded to their central office.

Reportedly, there were thousands of complainants against Aman Futures Group Philippines Inc. In Cebu Province ten complainants sought the help of the National Bureau of Investigation, of the ten only eight complaints were filed before the DOJ after the two failed to comply with the necessary requirements. The complainants in Cebu alone invested P106,909,399 with Aman.

The NBI is still waiting for the issuance of the warrant of arrest.  De Lima ordered the manhunt operation against the officials in the investment firm.

Named respondents were Aman Amalilio as chairman and Fernando Luna, Lelian Lim-Gan, Eduard Lim, William Fuentes, Naezelle Rodriguez and Lurix Lopez as incorporators and agents.  –(FREEMAN)