Former Bacolod City Mayor Luzviminda Valdez has been sentenced to a maximum of 42 years in prison for falsifying cash slips used in reimbursement claims, resulting in PHP362,000 in questionable city government payouts.
In a 114-page decision, the Sandiganbayan Sixth Division found Valdez and her former secretary, Brendo Elegio, guilty of seven counts of falsification of private documents under Article 172 in relation to Article 171 of the Revised Penal Code.
Valdez and Elegio were each sentenced to a minimum of 2 years and 4 months up to a maximum of 6 years for each count, totaling nearly 17 to 42 years of imprisonment.
The anti-graft court also ordered both to pay a fine of PHP35,000.
However, four other Bacolod City employees—Ricardo Tantiado Dahildahil Jr., Salvacion Paniergo Ortega, Eduardo Hulleza Ravena, and Lalaine Antique Villalva—were acquitted due to the prosecution’s failure to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
All accused were cleared of malversation charges, as prosecutors failed to establish the alleged misuse of public funds.
The charges stemmed from a 2004 post-audit by the Bacolod City State Audit team, which found discrepancies in reimbursement claims supported by falsified cash slips.
Auditors confirmed the irregularities by cross-checking submitted receipts with five issuing establishments, revealing that many receipts were altered or tampered with.
In one case, a reimbursement request dated Jan. 19, 2004, claimed PHP19,192 for meals at a resort, while a duplicate slip revealed an actual cost of only PHP192.
Another reimbursement on Jan. 28, 2004, was for PHP40,160 for sports equipment, although the verified receipt showed only PHP30 in purchases.
On Feb. 3, 2004, a PHP26,105 reimbursement was made using a receipt that originally reflected just PHP105.
A separate claim dated Feb. 15, 2004, inflated a PHP80 pastry purchase to PHP38,400.
Prosecutors noted that in most cases, representatives from the establishments no longer had direct knowledge of the 10-year-old transactions but verified the authenticity of the photocopied duplicate slips and staff signatures.
On March 13, 2005, the city was reimbursed PHP5,022 for a meal that cost PHP1,201.
Another case involved a manipulated date on a receipt originally marked March 10, 2004, changed to March 13 to justify a PHP22,174 reimbursement for a PHP22 meal.
A March 25, 2004, slip for PHP60 worth of bread was altered to claim PHP21,600, while a March 26, 2004, meal purchase of PHP374 was exaggerated to PHP100,432.
“As the claimant of the reimbursements with the falsified cash slips as supporting documents, and as payee of all nine checks in these cases, all of which she received, accused Valdez is presumed to be the material author of the falsification,” the ruling stated.
The court emphasized that the defense failed to provide a convincing explanation for the falsified documents, reinforcing the presumption that Valdez and Elegio were responsible for the forgeries.
Hold departure orders were lifted for all acquitted individuals, while those for Valdez and Elegio remain in place.
Their bail bonds were ordered released, subject to standard auditing and accounting procedures.
No civil liability was imposed, as the court said the prosecution failed to prove that the local government of Bacolod suffered actual financial damage due to the accused’s actions.
