Decree No. 1412, amending certain provisions of Book I, P.D. 442, otherwise known as the New
Labor Code of the Philippines, in relation to Article 13 (b) and (c) of said Code as further
amended by P.D. Nos. 169, 1920 and 2018, accordingly sentences both accused to suffer the
penalty of life imprisonment (RECLUSION PERPETUA) with the accessory penalties provided
for by law, each to pay a fine of ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND (P100,000.00) PESOS without
subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency; to return and pay, jointly and solidarily, to Calara
the sum of FIFTEEN THOUSAND (P15,000.00) PESOS; to Bonifacio the sum of THIRTEEN
THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED (P13,500.00) PESOS; to Cruz the sum of TWELVE
THOUSAND (P12,000.00) PESOS; to Marias the sum of SIX THOUSAND THREE
HUNDRED (P6,300.00) PESOS; also without subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency;
and to pay the costs.
Manila, Philippines, November 20, 1991.xii[12]
Records of the case were forwarded to this Court by the Regional Trial Court of Manila, Branch
12, in view of the fact that penalty in this case is life imprisonment.xiii[13] She now seeks a
reversal of the judgment of conviction on the sole ground that the lower court erred in
appreciating the evidence presented by the prosecution in its favor, and disregarding the denial
asserted by her.
In her brief, appellant maintains that she has no personal connection in any way with Min-Asia,
either as an officer or as a stockholder thereof. However, she admits that she was lessor of the
office space at Don Santiago Building in Taft Avenue but that she sub-leased half of her space to
said agency. The names of the recruiters, Bernardino and Tolentino came up in the testimonies of
the complainants but they were never apprehended nor brought to trial, thus she contends that
she was held to answer for the charge being allegedly the only link to Bernardino who remains
still at large. She denies the signatures indicated in several cash vouchers and receipts as her
own. According to her, the fact that she was always seen at the agency, was a mistaken
presumption of her connection with Min-Asia. Moreover, she explains the reason she was always
within the vicinity of the agency was that the other half of the space rented out was her office.
She further states that, it is unusual and unnatural for the complainants who were all college
graduates to entrust their hard earned money to a sexagenarian, [o]n the other hand, it is against
human experience that a 64-year-old woman would risk being incarcerated by engaging in illegal
recruitment.xiv[14]
After a thorough study and consideration of the evidence on record, we are inclined to affirm the
trial courts judgment. We find appellant, despite her denial, to have been engaged in the practice
of illegal recruitment in large scale and thus violated the provisions of Article 38 (a) and (b) in
relation to Article 39 (a) and Article 13 (b) and (c) of the Labor Code.xv[15]
Appellants argument is less than convincing. In the face of direct and positive evidence
presented by four complainants against her, the appellant could interpose only the defense of
denial. She would want the trial court to make her denial prevail over the testimonies and
documents presented by the prosecution. However, nothing on record would show any ill-motive
or bias whatsoever that would taint the prosecutions evidence. It thus becomes impossible for an
objective judge to overturn, without legal basis, precedents which maintain that denial is a self-