Annulment-made-easy was bogus lawyer’s forte

Ending rocky marriages without the lengthy court procedures was allegedly her specialty.

A woman who allegedly posed as an annulment lawyer, along with her two accomplices, was arrested by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) in an entrapment Thursday morning.

The operation against Victoria delos Reyes and her companion Gliceria Cinco and driver Henry Oclima stemmed from a complaint filed by Baguio City Judge Mia Joy Oallares-Cawed and a female victim who was duped into paying Delos Reyes more than P200,000 in “legal fees.”

The three suspects were arrested after Delos Reyes’ supposed client handed her the marked money when they met at a Pasay City bus station.

The complaint pointed to Delos Reyes as the source of “fake decisions purportedly rendered and certificates of finality allegedly issued by Baguio Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 4” where Cawed is the presiding judge.

According to the victim, Delos Reyes, who was referred by a friend, introduced herself as a lawyer who could handle her annulment case with her estranged husband.

Delos Reyes allegedly assured her that she could secure a decree of annulment in three to four months without her having to appear in court.

In February, Delos Reyes gave the victim a copy of a decision purportedly signed by Cawed. But when the victim went to the local civil registry of Baguio City, she discovered that the court documents were fake.

Cawed later confirmed that there was no such case filed in the Baguio RTC and that the signature was not hers.

Still unaware of the victim’s discoveries, Delos Reyes texted her to ask for an additional P20,000. The NBI took this as an opportunity to set a trap.

Held in detention at the NBI main office in Manila, Delos Reyes denied the allegations even after various legal documents and court decisions—whose authenticity was still being verified—were found in her possession.

She faces charges of estafa through falsification of documents, usurpation of authority, forgery and illegal use of aliases, according to the NBI.