6/9/2020 E-Library - Information At Your Fingertips: Printer Friendly For engaging in recruitment of workers without obtaining the necessary license from the POEA, Botero should suffer the consequences of Ricorn's illegal act for "(i)f the offender is a corporation, partnership, association or entity, the penalty shall be imposed upon the officer or officers of the corporation, partnership, association or entity responsible for violation; x x x"[30] he evidence shows that appellant Botero was one of the incorporators of Ricorn. For reasons that cannot be discerned from the records, Ricorn's incorporation was not consummated. Even then, appellant cannot avoid his liabilities to the public as an incorporator of Ricorn. He and his co-accused Garcia held themselves out to the public as officers of Ricorn. They received money from applicants who availed of their services. They are thus estopped from claiming that they are not liable as corporate officials of Ricorn.[31] Section 25 of the Corporation Code provides that "(a)ll persons who assume to act as a corporation knowing it to be without authority to do so shall be liable as general partners for all the debts, liabilities and damages incurred or arising as a result thereof: Provided, however, That when any such ostensible corporation is sued on any transaction entered by it as a corporation or on any tort committed by it as such, it shall not be allowed to use as a defense its lack of corporate personality." Appellant Botero is guilty of the crime of illegal recruitment in a large scale considering it was proven that he, together with his cohorts, were able to defraud the six complainant-witnesses in this case. Under Article 38 (b) of the Labor Code, illegal recruitment in large scale is perpetrated if committed against three (3) or more persons individually or as a group. And under Article 39 (a) of the same Code, accusedappellant's crime is punishable by life imprisonment and a fine of one hundred thousand pesos (P100,000.00). Finally, it is fruitless for appellant to deny he conspired with his co-accused to commit the crime at bar. The fact that all the accused were co-conspirators in defrauding the complainants could be inferred from their acts. They played different roles in defrauding complainants: accused Garcia was the president, appellant Botero was the vicepresident and accused-at-large Miraples was the treasurer of Ricorn.[32] Each one played a part in the recruitment of complainants. They were indispensable to each other. IN VIEW WHEREOF, the decision of the Regional Trial Court convicting accusedappellant Patricio Botero of the crime of illegal recruitment in large scale is affirmed in all respects. Costs against accused-appellant. SO ORDERED. Regalado, (Chairman), Romero, Mendoza, and Torres, Jr., JJ., concur. [1] Decision penned by Presiding Judge Jose R. Hernandez, Branch 158, National Capital Judicial Region, Pasig, Metro Manila. [2] Rollo, p. 3. elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/34714 6/8