Ombuds charges former BIR employee

CEBU, Philippines - For her failure to controvert the allegations filed against her, the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas indicted a former employee of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Revenue Region 13, Cebu City.

Graft investigator Sarah Jo Vergara found probable cause to charge Mae Cheryl Enguio, computer operator II, before the courts for violation of Republic Act 3019 or Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and two counts of estafa.

“Wherefore, there being sufficient evidence tending to prove that respondent received the amount of P280,000 which one Steve Matthew Aparte came to entrust respondent on account of her repute as a BIR employee,” the resolution reads.

Vergara recommended P80,000 bail for two counts of estafa and P30,000 bail for anti-graft.

The incident happened on December 2, 2009.

Based on the resolution, the Special Investigation Division of BIR-Revenue Region 13, through investigator Rogelio Lusares, investigated the payment of Capital Gains Tax and Documentary Stamp Tax by Maria Socorro Escario-Yu in connection with the sale of her real property situated at Barangay Kamputhaw, Cebu City, to Francis Fabian Borromeo (as represented by Aparte).

Upon investigation, Lusares found out that the documents pertaining to the transaction was fraudulent.

“Based on respondent’s entries as BIR encoder, the payment/s appeared to have been made on December 2, 2009 at the Landbank of the Philippines (LBP) but the bank certified that no such payment of taxes was made on such date by Yu,” the facts of the case reads.

With that, Lusares said their division concluded that the taxes were never paid; the tax returns, tax clearance certificate and certificate authorizing registration were all issued through “misrepresentation and fraud.”

To verify such conclusion, they confronted Borromeo and Aparte. The two denied any hand with the preparation of the questionable tax returns and others.

They added that they entrusted everything to the respondent after they handed the P280,000.

After evaluating the complaint, Vergara summoned accused to file her answer but the accused failed to do so.

“Respondent has been accorded more than adequate opportunity to be heard, but she has not availed of the same. This Office sees respondent’s consistent failure to answer the charge against her as nothing other than a manifestation of her decision to waive the opportunity so extended in her favor. This Office need not wait any longer; the case is ready enough for resolution,” the resolution reads.

She added that because of the failure of the accused to file her counter-affidavit, their office elevated the case based on the evidence presented by the complainant, the BIR, Revenue Region 13, Cebu City.

“Enguio unlawfully and criminally encoded false entries of payment in the BIR Regional Data Center-Visayas and prepared spurious deposit slips for tax payments with notations supposedly proving receipt of the deposit by the LBP, so as to make it appear that the P280,000 respondent received from Borromeo (as represented by Aparte) was applied to the payment of taxes and other fees assessed for the sale of a real property when in truth no payment was made,” the charge sheet reads.

Vergara said that because of this, Borromeo has to pay the BIR. (FREEMAN)