Ligot, wife deny tax evasion charges

MANILA, Philippines - Former military comptroller Jacinto Ligot and his wife Erlinda yesterday denied allegations they evaded payment of P428 million in taxes.

The Ligot couple maintained they filed the proper amount of taxes before the preliminary investigation of the Department of Justice (DOJ) in a hearing presided over by Assistant State Prosecutor Stewart Mariano.

Ligot said he filed his income tax return (ITR) and paid the proper amount. Erlinda said the last time she filed her income tax was in 1977 when she was still single.

After getting married, she no longer had any source of income and allowed her husband to file a joint income tax return.

Ligot, on the other hand, said the original copy of the ITR was among the documents he submitted when his promotion as a general was confirmed by the Commission on Appointments.

Ligot had succeeded retired Maj. Gen. Carlos Garcia as comptroller of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

Garcia, on the other hand, is facing charges of plunder before the Sandiganbayan, accused of amassing P303 million in ill-gotten wealth.

On May 9, the Sandiganbayan approved the plea bargain deal between Garcia and the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).

Prior to its actual approval, the anti-graft court ordered Garcia to surrender P135.4 million worth of alleged ill-gotten wealth to the government pursuant to the deal.

After compliance, the Sandiganbayan allowed him to plead guilty to the lesser crimes of direct bribery and facilitating money laundering on Dec. 16, 2010 and allowed him to post bail on the same day.

Ligot was charged with tax evasion by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) before the DOJ.

The BIR accused the Ligot couple of evading payment of taxes from 2001 to 2004 in the amount of P428 million in aggregate tax liabilities.

The BIR said Ligot failed to declare his income and pay the proper amount of taxes in 2001. Erlinda, on the other hand, was alleged to have committed the same offense from 2001 to 2004.

The BIR cited the Ligot couple’s millions-worth of bank deposits and his purchase of properties in Rizal province, a condominium unit in Makati City, and a sports utility vehicle.

While Ligot was the military comptroller, the BIR said Erlinda made several bank deposits, including a $200,000 bank transaction.

The BIR also alleged that Erlinda purchased several real properties in the US.