DAVAO CITY —-The Sandiganbayan sustained the decision of the Regional Trial Court in Bukidnon province in sentencing Atty. Manuel C. Felicia to ten years imprisonment for graft.
The anti-graft court denied the appeal filed by Felicia, the former chief of the Register of Deeds in the province of Bukidnon.
The Bukidnon regional trial court (RTC) found Felicia guilty of violating the anti-graft and corrupt practices act.
The case against Felicia stemmed from a complaint filed by the local Bureau of Internal Revenue regional director and private individuals following anomalies in the issuance of transfer certificate of titles from deceased registered owners.
in 2008, the Office of the Ombudsman consolidated complaints against Felicia.
In a decision dated June 6, the anti-graft court’s Sixth Division denied the appeal filed by Atty. Manuel C. Felicia, and affirmed the 2020 ruling of the Bukidnon RTC finding him guilty of violation of RA 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.
In 2020, Felicia was arrested in an entrapment operation led by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) following a complaint by Policarpio Catalan claiming that Felicia asked for cash for the immediate approval and release of a certificate of land title.
In affirming the conviction, the Sandiganbayan said that following Felicia’s acts, “the registration process was railroaded, so to speak” and the integrity of the system “was subverted in a high-handed manner by the very official who swore to preserve it.”
The tribunal said Felicia “arbitrarily bypassed statutory safeguards, and leapfrogged tax collection to make for the illicit conveyance.”
