By The Financial District
Jul 19, 20211 min
The Regional Trial Court (RTC) and Municipal Trial Court in Cities (MTCC), Tarlac City, convicted a former officer of the now-closed Rural Bank of Tarlac, Inc. (RB Tarlac) for violation of the General Banking Law of 2000 and the Revised Penal Code, respectively, on charges filed by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
In its decision dated 27 April 2021, RTC-Tarlac City's Branch 110 sentenced Celedonio C. Aquino, former President/Chairman of RB Tarlac, to pay a total fine of Php 100,000.00 for two counts of Engaging or Participating in Fraudulent Transactions, after Aquino pleaded guilty to said offenses.
Likewise, on 12 January 2021, MTCC-Tarlac City's Branch 1 sentenced Aquino to suffer imprisonment of up to one year and one day, after pleading guilty to one count of Simple Falsification or Use of Falsified Documents.
The criminal cases arose from two (2) fictitious loan accounts with RB Tarlac amounting to a total of Php 466,500.00. Said loans were discovered by the BSP during their investigation on the irregular transactions of the bank.
As regulator of banks and non-bank financial institutions performing quasi-banking functions, the BSP continues to promote financial stability through good governance among its supervised institutions in order to ensure the soundness of the financial system and to protect the interest of the general public.