Republic of the Philippines
SUPREME COURT
FIRST DIVISION
G.R. No. 168445 November 11, 2005
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, Appellee,
vs.
CAPT. FLORENCIO O. GASACAO, Appellant.
DECISION
YNARES-SANTIAGO, J.:
This is an appeal from the May 18, 2005 Decision1 of the Court of Appeals in CA-G.R. CR No. 00800 dismissing the appeal of appellant, Florencio O.
Gasacao and affirming the March 5, 2001 Joint Decision2 of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Quezon City, Branch 218, finding appellant guilty beyond
reasonable doubt of Large Scale Illegal Recruitment in Crim. Case No. Q-00-94240 and acquitting him of the charge in Crim. Case No. Q-00-94241.
The factual antecedents are as follows:
Appellant was the Crewing Manager of Great Eastern Shipping Agency Inc., a licensed local manning agency, while his nephew and co-accused, Jose
Gasacao, was the President. As the crewing manager, appellant’s duties included receiving job applications, interviewing the applicants and informing
them of the agency’s requirement of payment of performance or cash bond prior to deployment.
On August 4, 2000, appellant and Jose Gasacao were charged with Large Scale Illegal Recruitment defined under Section 6, paragraphs (a), (l) and
(m) of Republic Act (RA) No. 8042 or the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995, and penalized under Section 7 (b) of the same law,
before the RTC of Quezon City.
The informations read:
In Criminal Case No. Q-00-94240
That sometime in the months of May to December, 1999 or thereabout, in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines, and within the jurisdiction of this
Honorable Court, the above-named accused, conspiring, confederating and mutually helping one another, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and
criminally recruit, enlist and promise overseas employment to the private complainants, namely, Lindy M. Villamor, Dennis Cabangahan, Erencio C.
Alaba, Victorino U. Caderao, Rommel B. Patolen, Joseph A. Demetria and Louie A. Arca, as overseas seamen/seafarers, the said accused thereby
charging, exacting and collecting from the said private complainants cash bonds and/or performance bonds in amounts ranging from P10,000.00 to
P20,000.00 without any authority to do so and despite the fact that the same is prohibited by the POEA Rules and Regulations, which amount is
greater than that specified in the schedule of allowable fees prescribed by the Secretary of Labor and Employment, and despite the payment of the
said fees, the said accused failed to actually deploy the private complainants without valid reasons as determined by the Department of Labor and
Employment and despite the failure of deployment, the said accused failed to reimburse the expenses incurred by the said private complainants in
connection with their documentation and processing for the purpose of their supposed deployment.
CONTRARY TO LAW.3
In Criminal Case No. Q-00-94241
That sometime in the months of September to November 1999 or thereabout, in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines, and within the jurisdiction of
this Honorable Court, the above-named accused, conspiring, confederating and mutually helping one another, did then and there willfully, unlawfully
and criminally recruit, enlist and promise overseas employment to the private complainants, namely, Melvin I. Yadao, Frederick Calambro and Andy
Bandiola, as overseas seamen/seafarers, the said accused thereby charging, exacting and collecting from the said private complainants cash bonds
and/or performance bonds in amounts ranging from P10,000.00 to P20,000.00 without any authority to do so and despite the fact that the same is
prohibited by the POEA Rules and Regulations, which amount is greater that that specified in the schedule of allowable fees prescribed by the
Secretary Labor and Employment, and despite the payment of said fees, the said accused failed to actually deploy the private complainants without
valid reasons as determined by the Department of Labor and Employment and despite the failure of deployment, the said accused failed to reimburse
the expenses incurred by the said private complainants in connection with their documentation and processing for the purpose of their supposed
deployment.
SO ORDERED.4
Only the appellant was arrested while Jose Gasacao remained at large. When arraigned, appellant pleaded not guilty to the offense charged.
Thereafter, trial on the merits ensued. On March 5, 2001, the RTC of Quezon City, Branch 218, rendered its Joint Decision convicting appellant of
Large Scale Illegal Recruitment in Crim. Case No. Q-00-94240 and acquitting him of the charge in Crim. Case No. Q-00-94241. The dispositive portion
of the joint decision reads:
WHEREFORE, judgment is hereby rendered as follows: