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NBI starts probe of Legacy Group's alleged 'double-your-money' scheme


MANILA, Philippines - The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has started to look into the alleged “double-your-money" investment scheme of the Legacy Group following the filing of complaints of 31 investors. Lawyer Allan Contado, chief of Anti-Graft Division (AGD) and concurrent bureau spokesman, said the investors have already lodged syndicated estafa against the incorporators of the Legacy Group at AGD. Contado did not name the complainants. Another complainant identified as Josephine Soriano who invested P5 million in the Legacy Group in 2007 and 2008 filed a complaint at the Special Task Force (STF) under Head Agent Arnel Dalumpines against Legacy Consolidated Plans Inc. and the Scholarship Plan Philippines Inc. Special Investigator Darwin Francisco said the bureau is focusing on the criminal aspect of the investment scheme, specifically the violation of Article 315 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC) in relation to Presidential Decree 1689 and the Securities Regulation Code known as RA 8799. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had already forwarded pertinent documents to the NBI regarding the Legacy Group’s case. “We are focused on criminal aspects and this is different from the complaints initiated by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) against the Legacy Group, which is being handled by others," he said. Francisco said Soriano had availed herself of the educational plan for her child for P100,000. She was later encouraged by Legacy Group to invest. She first invested P4 million and additional P1 million for the double-your-money investment opportunity. “She was assured that her money will be doubled in three years time," said Francisco. Many companies of the Legacy Group closed in December last year. For his part, Contado said they are in the process of consolidating the pieces of evidence to determine if there are basis to file criminal complaints against the Legacy Group. “We are still investigating the case. About 30 complainants filed a complaint with AGD," he said. In December, another rural bank belonging to the Legacy Group declared a bank holiday. This came after several banks of Legacy declared bank holidays early in December last year. The Bank of East Asia (Rural Bank of Minglanilla) posted a notice of a bank holiday that caught even the security guards of the establishment by surprise. Other banks under the Legacy Group that have declared bank holidays are the branches of Philippine Countryside Rural Banks, Inc. in the towns of Liloan and Consolacion and the cities of Lapu-Lapu, Mandaue and Cebu. The PR Bank branch in Mandaue City and in the town of Argao also declared a bank holiday together with its branches in Negros, Tagbilaran and Dumaguete City. The group, according to their Web site, is a conglomerate of banks and pre-need companies wherein the banks offer various financial, educational and memorial plans. Other members of The Group are companies that provide credit cards, micro-lending and automotive financing services. The rural banks under the Legacy Group were earlier found by the examiners of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas last June 2007 to have an aggregate capital deficiency of P2.5 billion, prompting the central bank to put the banks under receivership, an action that was strongly opposed by the banks' management. A legal battle ensued and finally the Supreme Court handed a ruling last November 24, allowing the BSP findings to be enforced. The BSP ordered 10 rural banks of Legacy Group closed due to insufficiency of funds. Part of the Legacy Group is the Legacy Consolidated Plans Inc., which was acquired by Celso G. de los Angeles Jr. in 1997. It ranked among the top 10 pre-need companies in the country that offers pension, education and memorial plans. Reports said De los Angeles, former chief of National Home Mortgage Finance Corporation, is a town mayor in Bicol. - GMANews.TV
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