CTA affirms dismissal of BIR complaint vs election lawyer

Election lawyer George Garcia (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/JOAN BONDOC)

MANILA — The Court of Tax Appeals has affirmed the Department of Justice’s dismissal of the Bureau of Internal Revenue’s tax evasion complaint against well-known election lawyer George Erwin Garcia.

In a 13-page decision, the CTA Third Division denied the petition of former BIR Commissioner Kim Jacinto-Henares seeking to annul the June 10, 2015 resolution issued by then Justice Secretary (and now detained Senator) Leila de Lima in favor of Garcia.

The BIR in September 2011 filed a complaint against Garcia based on a tip from a confidential informant. The lawyer allegedly admitted during a Makati court hearing that he bought a P53-million condominium unit in 2010, despite reporting a gross income of only P1,380,500 for that year.

But the DoJ investigating prosecutor dismissed the complaint, giving weight to Garcia’s financial statements showing that he took out loans to pay for the condominium unit.

The CTA said De Lima was justified in denying the BIR’s appeal against the prosecutor’s findings. It added that the justice secretary then did not commit grave abuse of discretion to warrant a reversal of her resolution.

The tax court affirmed the prosecutor’s findings that the loans did not constitute taxable income, that Garcia properly disclosed that he obtained loans, and that the allegation of fraud was based on mere conjectures.

“The findings of the Investigating Prosecutor were based on the documents presented and were in no way arbitrary, whimsical, capricious or despotic,” the decision read.

Justice Ma. Belen M. Ringpis-Liban penned the decision with the concurrence of Justices Lovell R. Bautista and Esperanza R. Fabon-Victorino.

Garcia currently serves as counsel for former Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is contesting his defeat by Vice President Leni Robredo in the 2016 polls. He also lawyered for Senator Grace Poe, a 2016 presidential contender whose citizenship and residency qualifications the Supreme Court affirmed after the Commission on Elections cancelled her candidacy.  SFM/rga