A division of the Sandiganbayan has acquitted a retired military officer from perjury.
The 2nd Division of the anti-graft court ruled in favor of Major General Carlos Garcia, former comptroller of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, who has been accused of allegedly failing to declare ownership of several vehicles in his 1998 statement of assets and liabilities and networth (SALN).
This is the second time that Garcia was acquitted from perjury. The first was in 2006 when the Sandiganbayan Third Division acquitted Garcia from the same crime in connection with his 1999 SALN in which he allegedly failed to declare ownership of three vehicles worth P1.51-million.
In its ruling on Garcia’s second perjury case, the anti-graft court noted that due to the peculiarity of the SALN form, Garcia could not be faulted for putting erroneous information on his 1998 SALN.
In his Dec. 31, 1998 SALN, Garcia claimed that his vehicles were worth P870,000.
But special prosecutors said Garcia owned more than what he had declared, citing a Toyota Previa (UDS 195), valued at least P521,797; Mitsubishi L-300 Van De Luxe, (FDZ 582), valued at P424,583; and 1997 Honda Civic 1.6 VTI (FEC 134) valued at P564,000.
Garcia countered that the vehicles mentioned were owned by his wife.
The court said Garcia should have included his wife's vehicles if these were conjugal properties.
But the court said that the vehicles registered under Garcia's wife were not conjugal properties.
The court noted that there was nothing in the SALN form requiring a public officer to include the personal properties registered in the name of his or her spouse.
The court added that that same form did not require the inclusion of the personal property of the spouse.
Garcia has a another perjury case pending, a P303-million plunder case and two forfeiture cases against him, his wife Clarita, and children Ian Carl, Juan Paulo, and Timothy Mark.
INQUIRER.net
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