Ex-AFP chief found guilty of lying

The Sandiganbayan on Thursday found former Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Lisandro Abadia guilty of perjury for falsely declaring in his 1992 statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) that P2.55 million of his declared income had come from the sale of a piece of real estate.

The antigraft court’s 1st Division sentenced Abadia to a minimum of one month and maximum of one year imprisonment.

The case involved an unexplained wealth complaint against Abadia.

In its ruling, the Sandiganbayan said Abadia’s declaration in his
1992 SALN that his income included P2.55 million representing the proceeds from the sale of a piece of property was a “falsehood.”

The Office of the Ombudsman found that the claim was not backed by a deed of sale, receipt, check or any other documentary evidence.

The prosecution said the property, a 2,000-square-meter lot in Talisay, Cebu, was sold in 2002 for only P200,000, based on a deed of absolute sale.

Abadia claimed to have sold the lot to his first cousin, Emilio Rafols, in 1992 for P3.55 million, and the P2.55 million was the down payment.

But the court said Rafols’ testimony that he had bought the property from Abadia in 1992 was “not believable.”

It said it found it hard to believe that Rafols, who had no job when he supposedly acquired the land, had the millions to pay for it. It also doubted Rafols’ claim that he got the money from his children, as this was not supported by evidence.

It also found unbelievable that Rafols had effected the transfer of the land title in 2006 for P300,000, and had given the money to a friend and an agent whose names he could not remember.

“Such allegations tax the court’s credulity, especially considering, to repeat, the big amounts involved and render the whole evidence and defense of the accused unacceptable,” the antigraft court said.

It said the truth was that Abadia had sold the lot to Rafols in 2002 for only P200,000.

“That the preparation of his 1992 SALN indisputably required study, contemplation and review of the entries thereof makes the falsehood willful and deliberate,” it said.