|
Two British nationals, who were earlier slapped with
estafa charges for allegedly duping a businessman of some P4.8
million to invest in a garment business which the later found out to
be nonexistent, are now the subject of arrest warrants issued on
Friday by the Manila Regional Trial Court.
In a complaint filed before the
City Prosecutor’s Office of Manila, British Jackson Chiu Hon of
Sto. Domingo, Quezon City, said that suspects Mo Ka Keung and Ringo
Nang, both of legal age and residing in Barangay II-8, Pulilan,
Bulacan, approached him sometime in 2002 with a garments business
proposal.
Hon said he was convinced by the
suspects to invest in the said business on May 20, 2002. After
receiving the amount from him, the suspects had him sign an
agreement indicating his contribution and the capital to be invested
with Roots Manufacturing Corp. which the two claimed was a thriving
business in Bulacan.
“They told me their company is
growing and, in order to increase their capital and subsequently the
profit, they convinced me to add to the capital which I did until my
investment reached a total of P4.850 million on September 30,
2003.”
He said that when he went to the
alleged place of business in Pulilan, Bulacan, sometime in November
2004 he was shocked to find out that the company did not exist and
nowhere to be found.
Instead of Roots Manufacturing
Corp., another corporation, Marque Mills, was maintaining its
business in the said address.
Hon said that his suspicion was
further aroused when he checked with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC) and found that he was not listed as a stockholder
of Roots Manufacturing Corp., as only the two suspects were on the
list.
When confronted, the suspects
denied that they intended to defraud Hon of his investment. They
claimed that they had to cease operations due to financial loss.
Since they were not able to return his investment, Hon decided to
charge them with estafa.
Assistant Prosecutor Antonio
Valencia who conducted the preliminary investigation of the
complaint latter recommended the filing of the charges at the
regional trial court after finding probable cause against the two.
The two failed to attend the
preliminary investigation despite being subpoenaed by the
prosecutor.
 --James
Konstantin Galvez
|
