G.R. No. 179934 6 of 14 http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2009/may2009/179934.htm FIFTEEN THOUSAND PESOS (P15,000.00) in Crim. Case No. V-0772. SO ORDERED. [16] The Ruling of the Court of Appeals The Court of Appeals found that the prosecution sufficiently established the accuseds guilt for illegal recruitment. The accused cooperated with each other in convincing complainants to pay placement fees for employment abroad. The accused received money from the complainants. The act of the accused of recruiting complainants for employment abroad without the necessary license from the POEA constitutes the offense of illegal recruitment. The Court of Appeals also found that the prosecution has established accuseds guilt for estafa. The Court of Appeals stated that the very same evidence proving the accuseds commission of the offense of illegal recruitment also established that the accused connived in defrauding complainants by misrepresenting that they had the power, influence, agency and business to obtain overseas employment for complainants upon payment of placement fees. Complainants suffered damages to the extent of the various sums of money they delivered to accused. The Court of Appeals modified the penalties imposed on the accused as each information involved only one complainant. The accused cannot be convicted for illegal recruitment in large scale based on several informations each filed by only one complainant. The trial court erred in considering the three complainants in the two criminal cases when it convicted the accused of illegal recruitment in large scale. Since the accused were prosecuted under several informations for different complainants, the penalty imposed should be for each information. To convict the accused of illegal recruitment in large scale, there must be one information that must include all the complainants. Otherwise, the accused should be held liable only for simple illegal recruitment. The dispositive portion of the 21 June 2007 Decision of the Court of Appeals reads: (1) In Criminal Case No. V-0655, accused-appellant Erlinda Abordo is found GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of Simple Illegal Recruitment and is sentenced to suffer a prison term of Six (6) years and One (1) day as minimum, to Twelve (12) years as maximum, and to pay a fine of P200,000. (2) In Criminal Case Nos. V-0768, V-0770 and V-0771, Erlinda Abordo and Vina 1/28/2016 10:08 AM