SECOND DIVISION
[G.R. No. 227701. July 9, 2018.]
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. IMELDA PAMINTUAN-RELUYA, accused-appellant.
NOTICE
Sirs/Mesdames :
Please take notice that the Court, Second Division, issued a Resolution dated 09 July 2018which reads as follows:
"G.R. No. 227701 (People of the Philippines vs. Imelda Pamintuan-Reluya). — Assailed in this appeal is the Decision 1 dated September 11, 2015 of the Court of Appeals (CA) in CA-G.R. CR-HC No. 06704, which affirmed the Decision 2 dated February 24, 2014 of the Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 221 of Quezon City, in Criminal Case No. Q-08-151672, finding accused-appellant Imelda Pamintuan-Reluya (accused-appellant) guilty beyond reasonable doubt of illegal recruitment in large scale constituting economic sabotage.
After a careful review of the records of the case, the Court finds no reversible error committed by the CA in rendering the assailed decision.
Nonetheless, the Court finds that modification must be made on the penalty imposed in order to conform to Section 7 (b) of the Republic Act (R.A.) No. 8042 or the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995, the law penalizing acts of illegal recruitment in large scale. It reads, thus: caITAC
SEC. 7. PENALTIES. —
xxx xxx xxx
(b) The penalty of life imprisonment and a fine of not less than five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00) nor more than one million pesos (P1,000,000.00) shall be imposed if illegal recruitment constitutes economic sabotage as defined herein.
xxx xxx xxx (Emphasis ours)
By the use of the word "and," the provision clearly means that the penalty of life imprisonment always comes with a fine of not less than five hundred thousand pesos (P500,000.00) nor more than one million pesos (P1,000,000.00), with no discretion on the court as to the imposition of the fine but only as to the amount thereof within the range stated in the law. The fine is separate and distinct from the award of actual damages to the complainants equal to the amount of money they paid the accused-appellant as consideration or service fee for their recruitment. Thus, in People vs. Laogo3 and People vs. Ang, 4 the Court affirmed the imposition of fine in the amount of P500,000.00, in addition to actual damages to each of the complainants.
The Court also takes note that in People vs. Lalli, et al., 5 the Court pointed out that "the penalties in Section 7 of R.A. No. 8042 have already been amended by Section 6 of R.A. No. 10022, and have been increased to a fine of not less than P2,000,000.00 but not more than P5,000,000.00." 6 The said amendment took effect in 2010. Considering that the crime was committed in 2007, the penalties stated in R.A. No. 8042 shall still be applied.
WHEREFORE, the appeal is DISMISSED. The Court of Appeals Decision dated September 11, 2015 in CA-G.R. CR-HC No. 06704 is hereby AFFIRMEDwith MODIFICATION that accused-appellant Imelda Pamintuan-Reluya is likewise ordered to pay a fine of Five Hundred Thousand Pesos (P500,000.00) which, in addition to the other monetary awards, shall earn legal interest of six percent (6%) per annum from the finality of this decision until fully paid. ICHDca
SO ORDERED."
Very truly yours,
MA. LOURDES C. PERFECTODivision Clerk of CourtBy:(SGD.) TERESITA AQUINO TUAZONDeputy Division Clerk of Court
Footnotes
1. Penned by Associate Justice Danton Q. Bueser, with Associate Justices Apolinario D. Bruselas, Jr. and Victoria Isabel A. Paredes, concurring; rollo, pp. 2-10.
2. Rendered by Assisting RTC Judge Genie G. Gapas-Agbada; CA rollo, pp. 35-46.
3. 654 Phil. 24 (2011).
4. 583 Phil. 367 (2008).
5. 675 Phil. 126, 151 (2011).
6.Id.