DOJ indicts bank officer in $2.1 billion Wirecard fiasco

FILE PHOTO: DOJ logo. INQUIRER FILES

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Justice (DOJ) has indicted a bank assistant manager in connection with the $2.1 billion “scandal” involving the Germany-based firm Wirecard AG.

In a press briefer released Thursday, the DOJ said the assistant manager is charged with falsification of four bank certificates and two (2) counts of violation of Section 55,1(a) in relation to Section 56.1 of RA 8971 (the General Banking Act of 2010) in relation to Section 36 of R.A. 7653, as amended by RA 11211 (New Central Bank Act).

INQUIRER.net will not mention the name of the assistant manager as the DOJ has refused to provide a copy of the resolution. The DOJ cited privacy of the parties involved for its refusal although it identified the bank official in its briefer.

The DOJ briefer did not also provide the basis in filing the criminal cases against the bank officer. No explanation was likewise given despite queries from journalists.

On the other hand, the DOJ said it dismissed the complaint against Atty. Mark Kristopher G. Tolentino, Judith Singayan Pe, Jan Marsalek, and other Jane Does and John Does for insufficiency of evidence.

“The controversy emanated from a scandal involving a Munich-based digital technology company named Wirecard AG. The Philippines was dragged into the issue because BPI and Banco de Oro (BDO) were implicated for allegedly holding trust accounts for Wirecard AG in the amount of 1.9 Billion Euros of 2.1 Billion US Dollars. The banking institutions denied the same, averring that Wirecard AG was not their client,” according to a briefer from the DOJ.

Tolentino, former assistant secretary of Department of Transportation, was mentioned as the Filipino trustee of Wirecard AG in the Philippines, while respondent Jan Marsalek, Chief Operating Officer of Wirecard AG, allegedly entered Philippines on June 23, 2020. to evade authorities in Germany.

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