A Manila City councilor’s son has been ordered indicted by state lawyers for 87 counts of qualified theft through falsification of commercial documents for allegedly swindling more than P100 million from his clients while he was still a banker with the Binondo branch of Citibank.
In a 57-page resolution, a panel of prosecutors chaired by Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Ma. Emilia Victorio said the accused, Francis Bryan Ang, admitted in his affidavits and counter-affidavits tampering bank documents. The accused is the son of incumbent Manila City Councilor Bernie Ang.
Ang confessed he simulated transactions, including fund transfers, cash withdrawals and applications for manager’s checks by forging the signatures of clients in bank documents and appropriating the funds as his own and/or transferred the same to his intended beneficiaries which included the accounts of his other clients to meet the rate of return he promised to them.
The Court of Appeals last April ordered the freezing of Ang’s bank accounts and assets.
He managed to avoid detection by either changing the clients’ addresses on record with the bank or implementing the “hold mail” order to ensure that clients would not receive bank notices and statements.
“Having held the position of relationship manager of the subject accounts during all the times material to the commission of the offenses, the panel found that Ang took advantage of such position of trust and confidence when he prepared or caused the preparation of the questioned applications for fund transfers/manager’s checks and cash withdrawal slips/receipts, without the knowledge, consent or authorization of the account holders and the bank,” the Department of Justice (DoJ) ruled.
The DoJ, however, cleared Ang’s co-respondents in the case, namely, Oliver Salu, Sherjack Siao, Joanne Salud, Joan Karla Uy, Robinson Siao, Steven Uy, Philip Keith Ang, Esther Gobio Ang, Antonio Samson and Belina Cancio.
In the course of its investigation, the bank found out that Ang caused and facilitated the processing and payment of 82 transactions in the total amount of P97.003 million and $832,000 while a separate case was filed against Ang involving embezzlement of P1.6 million and $43,000 of a bank client.