DOJ: Dante Tan not off the hook yet

Contrary to earlier reports, criminal charges against controversial businessman Dante Tan have not been dismissed, Justice Undersecretary Manuel Teehankee clarified yesterday.

Tan, who, according to Teehankee, masterminded the Best World (BW) Resources Corp. stock price manipulation scandal in 1999, was charged with seven criminal cases for violations of the Revised Securities Act of 1982 involving stock manipulation and fraud.

He has not been absolved from criminal liability and is in fact facing imprisonment of 49 to 147 years, Teehankee said.

Tan’s 11 other cohorts — Raul de Castro, Eduardo Lim Jr., Hermogenes Laddaran, Jimmy Juan, Mario Juan, Eduard Co, Francisco Liboro, Federico Galang, Robinson Siao, Johny Yap and Reynaldo Madrilejo — who were similarly charged for their various roles in the BW scam, were facing seven to 63 years in prison each.

The Department of Justice filed charges against Tan and his co-accused based on two Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reports which showed that they artificially jacked up prices of BW stocks through wash sale, done-through transactions, private placements and other illegal schemes.

It will be recalled that BW share prices increased to as much as 18,000 percent on Oct. 12, 1999 only to plunge drastically a few days later, which fueled reports that insider trading was taking place at the bourse.

The third batch of complaints that the SEC lodged against Tan and seven others was, however, junked by the DOJ for insufficiency of evidence.

But assistant chief state prosecutor Nilo Mariano said that the dismissal of such cases would not affect the earlier cases filed against Tan.

Apart from Tan, the DOJ, in a 52-page resolution dated Jan. 23, cleared Lucio Co, a crony of former President Joseph Estrada who has duty free stores in Clark and owns the Pure Gold supermarket chain in Metro Manila; brokers Jerry Angping (Angping and Associates), Wilson Sy (Wealth Securities), Charles Ngan and Marc Vinalon (Securities 2000 Inc.) and individuals Ramon Lee and Jeanette Que.

But the DOJ found probable cause to charge Madrillejo of Abacus Securities and Yap of Solar Securities for wash sales, and Liboro of the PCCI Securities and Brokers Corp. for private placements and pre-arranged transactions.

To date, the SEC has accepted a total settlement payment of P21.267 million from several brokerage firms and individuals involved in BW.

The settlement is allowed under RSA but paying of the fines does not impute guilt on the part of those who paid them.