2 city treasury execs nabbed for extortion

Two inspectors of the Manila City Treasurer’s Office were nabbed by the police in an entrapment operation Friday for extorting P35,000 from a businessman in exchange for lowering his alleged unpaid taxes, a belated report of the District Special Police Unit (DSPU) showed.

DSPU chief Senior Superintendent Alejandro Gutierrez tasked chief of investigation and follow-up branch Senior Inspector Marcelo Reyes to act on a complaint by Mario Pronstroller, 60, president of Golden Eagle Shipping Corp., against three inspectors of the Manila Treasurer’s Office who allegedly demanded cash in exchange for lowering his taxes.

According to Pronstroller, Rochelle Gutierrez and Alfredo Silva of the Manila Treasurer Office came to his office last May 6 and demanded that he pay five years’ worth of taxes worth P380,655.21. The two later offered to settle the account for only P80,000, but Pronstroller bargained them down to P35,000.

On May 9, company accountant Susan Austria gave the two suspects P35,000 marked money.

Assistant city prosecutor Josefina Concepcion recommended the filing of graft and direct bribery charges against the two suspects, including one alias “Jasmine,” also of the Manila Treasurer’s Office, who allegedly connived with the two suspects.

Reyes said the illegal activities of the three City Hall employees partly account for the low tax collection in Manila. – Nestor Etolle, Sandy Araneta