FIRST DIVISION [G.R. No. 116382. January 29, 1998] PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. MA. LOURDES DE GUIANG y VILLANUEVA, accused-appellant. DECISION VITUG, J.: Accused-appellant Lourdes Bautista de Guiang was indicted before the Regional Trial Court ("RTC") of Manila in three separate informations, one for Illegal Recruitment proscribed under Article 38 and Article 39, in relation to Article 13(b) and (c), of the Labor Code, as amended, and the other two for estafa under Article 315 of the Revised Penal Code. The averments made by the City State Prosecutor in each of the three respective Informations read: In Criminal Case No. 92-104614 "That in or about and sometime during the period comprised between October 1991 and February 9, 1992, inclusive, in the City of Manila, Philippines, the said accused, representing herself to have the capacity to contract, enlist and transport Filipino workers for employment abroad, did then and wilfully and unlawfully for a fee, recruit and promise employment/job placement in Japan to the following persons, namely: Reynaldo R. Jugo, Jose R. Jugo and Rosita R. Jugo, without first having secured the required license or authority from the Department of Labor."i[1] In Criminal Case No. 92-104615 "That in or about and sometime the period comprised between December 2, 1991 and February 9, 1992, inclusive, in the City of Manila, Philippines, the said accused did then and there wilfully, unlawfully and feloniously defraud Jose R. Jugo in the following manner, to wit: the said accused, by means of false manifestations and fraudulent representations which she made to said Jose R. Jugo to the effect that she had the power and capacity to recruit and employ him as factory worker in Japan and could facilitate the processing of the pertinent papers if given the necessary amount to meet the requirements thereof, and by means of other similar deceits, induced and succeeded in inducing said Jose R. Jugo to give and deliver, as in fact he gave and delivered to said accused the amount of P70,000.00 on the strength of said manifestations and representations, said accused well knowing that the same were false and fraudulent and were made solely to obtain, as in fact she did obtain the amount of P70,000.00 which amount once in her possession, with intent to defraud, she wilfully, unlawfully, and feloniously misappropriated, misapplied and converted to her own personal use and benefit, to the damage and prejudice of said Jose R. Jugo in the aforesaid amount of P70,000.00."ii[2]