Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 2) — Metrobank filed a criminal complaint against an employee and two others for allegedly defrauding the bank of nearly ₱1-billion, a document obtained Tuesday said.
Metropolitan Bank & Trust Corp., the country’s second-largest bank, filed a joint complaint-affidavit with the Department of Justice (DOJ) dated July 24, 2017, one week after the National Bureau of Investigation arrested the bank’s head of Corporate Service Management Division, Ma. Victoria S. Lopez.
Also read: NBI nabs Metrobank official suspected to be behind fraud
In the complaint-affidavit, Metrobank, represented by its Department of Internal Affairs head, Jose L. Ballesteros, called on the DOJ to prosecute Lopez and two others on the two charges of qualified theft through falsification of commercial documents, which is an offense under the Revised Penal Code; and falsification of commercial documents, which is a violation of the General Banking Law of 2000.
It also named two others as conspirators, Hubert Co and Sue Sai. Co was named the payee of the cashier’s checks, while Sai’s name was written at the back of the cashier’s checks, and identified as the person who facilitated the deposit of the checks and the transfer of funds into a bank account, the bank said.
The bank said “there is sufficient ground to engender a well-founded belief that Respondents committed the crimes charged.”
“It is thus most respectfully prayed that this Honorable Office immediately issue a Resolution recommending prosecution of the present case,” Metrobank added.
Documents forged, authorization misrepresented
In the complaint-affidavit, Metrobank recounted how Lopez used the account of one of the bank’s biggest clients and forged documents to enable her to issue four cashier’s checks and a promissory note totaling₱995,875.000.00. Lopez has been with the bank for 30 years.
The first of four checks to Co was issued on September 21, 2013 in the amount of ₱20.2 million. Subsequent cashier’s checks were made out to Co in the following amounts and dates: ₱10.025 million on January 26, 2015; ₱35.35 million on June 21, 2017, and ₱30.3 million on June 30, 2017.
The biggest amount was for a ₱900-million promissory note on June 16, 2017, made in favor of Metrobank to cover a loan under a credit line extended by the bank, the document said.
“Based on Metrobank’s initial investigation, the whole proceeds of the loan amounting to ₱900,000,000.00 was taken by Respondent Lopez through the issuance of cashier’s checks or other means,” Metrobank said.
Metrobank said it uncovered the fraud on July 13, 2017, when its Corporate Banking Group “discovered dubious letters” allegedly from the client directing the bank to debit its account for the two separate checks issued in June 2017. The way the letter was presented, the lack of protocol observed by Lopez in vetting the signatures on the letter, raised red flags. Lopez was arrested by the NBI on July 17.
After double-checking with the bank’s client to ensure that such debits were authorized, the client denied the existence of the letters or of any requests to issue cashier’s checks, the complaint-affidavit stated.
Lawyer: Alleged conspirators unaware of fraud
Lawyers for Co and Sai said the two were taken advantage of by Lopez and that they had no knowledge of “her elaborate scheme.” The two had lent money to Lopez and were unaware that they were being repaid for the loan they extended to her through someone else’s account, they added. It was not immediately known for what purposes the loans to Lopez were to be used.
“Ms. Lopez fooled my clients by personally borrowing from them and paying them with manager’s or cashier’s checks,” Regie Tongol said in a statement to CNN Philippines. Tongol added that the checks they encashed that were issued to them by Lopez are transactions that were “legal and aboveboard as simple loan contracts.”
“They have no way of knowing that the money paid came from the other victims of Ms. Lopez. My clients are simple people duped by Ms. Lopez into being involuntary and unwilling participants in her elaborate scheme,” the lawyer said.
Following the arrest of Lopez, the Bankers Association of the Philippines said it was confident that Metrobank would take measures to ensure that this incident will not happen again.
Metrobank is the country’s second largest bank with assets of ₱1.6 trillion, according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas.
