Ombudsman clears Acsa of launder rap

Acsa Ramirez, the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) employee who blew the whistle on a tax payment diversion scam amounting to some P203 million, was vindicated yesterday after the Office of the Ombudsman cleared her of money-laundering charges.

In a 25-page resolution approved by Overall Deputy Ombudsman Margarito Gervasio Jr., the Ombudsman ruled that Ramirez could not be blamed for the money-laundering incident because the accounts involved had already been opened a year before she joined the LBP branch in Binangonan, Rizal.

"The suspicious accounts were opened at the time (former LBP employee Ramon) Joven was the cashier. Ramirez was transferred to Binangonan in the third week of April 2002 while the accounts had been there for more than a year," the Ombudsman said,

"She did make a report to the bank manager and the regional head though she is not duty-bound to do so. She is not the compliance officer or its equivalent. She is not the compliance officer to its equivalent. The branch head or unit head was actually designated as the compliance officer required under the law to make a report," the resolution added.

Also cleared for "insufficiency of evidence" was LBP Binangonan branch manager Artemio San Juan who was investigated for one of the four accounts that were believed to have been used in diverting some P440 million in tax payments.

Only P9 million of funds were accounted for while the remaining P431 million cannot be traced.

However, the Ombudsman said there was "sufficient ground" to charge Joven of violating the Anti-Money Laundering Act.

Meanwhile, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Reynaldo Wycoco said the NBI, whicih filed the money laundering charges against Ramirez, will respect the decision of teh Ombudsman.

"We always follow the rule of law. If that is the decision, then we will respect it. From the beginning, we have always said that she will have her day in court," Wycoco said in a phone interview.

LBP officials had said the funds represent the tax payments of seven large companies whose checks, payable to the BIR, were diverted into the accounts under the fictitious names Roberto Lucero, Alan Clemente, Jose Francisco and Joven Aquino.

The diversion was done by switching the check paid by the taxpayer and crediting the same exact amount to the fictitious account.

Officials stressed, however, that the companies were not involved in the scam because they had records to prove that the companies paid their taxes.

In order to make it appear that the company actually paid its taxes, fake LBP receipts, tax returns and other fake documents were submitted to the accounting department of Lorenzo Shipping Corp.

The National Bureau of Investigation said the scheme was devised by Ronilo Yu, of Estancia, Iloilo, vice president for finance and administration of the Lorenzo Shipping Corp. Yu is believed to have fled the country, the NBI added.

Also charged for the tax diversion scam were businessman Teodorico Rivera, of Marilao, Bulacan; Resty Rivera, of Parañaque City, a certain Joven Aquino, of Cardona, Rizal; and two still unidentified persons.

Yu and the others were charged with 18 counts of estafa, Wycoco said. - With Mike Frialde