5/3/2021 E-Library - Information At Your Fingertips: Printer Friendly they would be hired; and that by reason or on the strength of such assurance, the complainants parted with their money in payment of the various processing and placement fees. As all these representations of the accused-appellant proved false, paragraph 2(a), Article 315 of the Revised Penal Code is thus applicable. The penalty for estafa depends on the amount defrauded. Penal Code states: Art. 315 of the Revised "Art. 315. Swindling (estafa). - Any person who shall defraud another by any of the means mentioned hereinbelow shall be punished by: "1st The penalty of prision correccional in its maximum period to prision mayor in its minimum period, if the amount of the fraud is over 12,000 pesos but does not exceed 22,000 pesos; and if such amount exceeds the latter sum, the penalty provided in this paragraph shall be imposed in its maximum period, adding one year for each additional 10,000 pesos; but the total penalty which may be imposed shall not exceed twenty years. In such cases, and in connection with the accessory penalties which may be imposed and for the purpose of the other provisions of this Code, the penalty shall be termed prision mayor or reclusion temporal, as the case may be; "2nd The penalty of prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods, if the amount of the fraud is over 6,000 pesos but does not exceed 12,000 pesos;" The trial court sentenced accused-appellant Aurora Soliven to suffer imprisonment of eight (8) years and one (1) day of prision mayor, to twelve (12) years and one (1) day of reclusion temporal each in Criminal Cases Nos. Q-94-58865, Q-94-58867 and Q-9458870. Pursuant to the aforequoted Art. 315 of the Revised Penal Code, the penalties imposed on appellant Aurora Soliven should be reduced as follows: In Criminal Case No. Q-94-58865 (which pertains to private complainant Shirley Velasco), the amount involved is P27,000.00. The penalty prescribed by law therefor is prision correccional maximum to prision mayor minimum to be imposed in its maximum period. Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, the proper penalty to be imposed on accused-appellant is a prison term of four (4) years and two (2) months of prision correccional, as minimum, to seven (7) years and four (4) months of prision mayor, as maximum.[22] In Criminal Case No. Q-94-58867, accused-appellant defrauded private complainant Marlon B. Sotero in the amount of P21,600.00 (appellant having returned to the latter the amount of P5,400.00). The penalty prescribed by law therefor is prision correccional maximum to prision mayor minimum. Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, the proper penalty to be imposed on accused-appellant is a prison term of four (4) years and two (2) months of prision correccional medium as minimum, to six (6) years and four (4) months of prision mayor minimum as maximum.[23] https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/52764 11/14