2 PRC fixers arrested by NBI agents

Two alleged fixers at the Professional Regulations Commission (PRC) were nabbed over the weekend by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation for alleged fraud.

Those arrested were identified as Armi Menor Liquid and her husband, Mario Liguid, both of 4 Madiac St., Santol, Quezon City.

Investigation conducted by the NBI’s Intellectual Property Division showed that the suspects allegedly managed to defraud several applicants for professional licenses.

According to the NBI, Armi would allegedly introduce herself as Amy Empaynado, chief of the NBI’s Licensing Office. According to the NBI, Armi would convince the victims to shell out between P80,000 to P100,000 in exchange for assurance that they would pass the strict PRC licensure examinations.

Among those allegedly victimized by the suspects were applicants for licenses in civil engineering, public accountancy and maritime engineering. The NBI said the couple has been engaged in their illegal operation since 1997.

The scam was only uncovered when several of the victims trooped to Empaynado’s office to ask what had happened to the promises. It was only then that the victims discovered that Armi was not the real Empaynado. The victims and Empaynado then sought the assistance of the NBI who organized an entrapment operation.

The NBI managed to contact one of the victims who still has to make a full payment to the suspects. Under the NBI’s instruction, the victim asked the suspects to meet him at a restaurant along España, Manila last Friday.

NBI agents arrested the suspects as they were accepting the marked P10,000 from the victim, an applicant for a civil engineering license.

According to Empaynado, the suspects managed to lure their victims through their contacts at the dormitories located near the PRC building in Sampaloc, Manila.

The suspects are now detained a the NBI jail as charges for estafa, usurpation of public authority and falsification of public documents were filed against them before the Manila City Prosecutors Office. – Mike Frialde