The Sandiganbayan found actor Roderick Paulate guilty in the case of graft and falsification related to his alleged hiring of “ghost employees” in 2010 when he was still serving as a councilor of Quezon City. Paulate has previously denied the allegations against him.
In a 130-page decision dated November 25, the anti-graft court said that Paulate recommended hiring 30 people under “job contracts” and wages from July to December 2010, despite irregularities in their Personal Data Records.
According to the Sandiganbayan, the government prosecutors proved the following:
- job order employees have no records of birth;
- none of the job order employees have requested for a National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) clearance;
- the job order employees could not be located at their given residences;
- the job order employees were not registered voters of their respective barangays; and
- the job order employees have no record in the schools where they allegedly attended
“Given the above findings and in addition to the other pieces of evidence presented, the prosecution has well established that the entries in the Personal Data Sheet (PDS) of the job contractors were indeed falsified,” the decision explained.
Roderick Paulate sentenced to up to eight years in prison
“The defense did not give any logical explanation for the glaring inaccuracies of the entries in the PDS or adduce any evidence to show the truth thereof,” it added.
The court sentenced Paulate and his co-accused, driver/liaison officer Vicente Bajamunde, to prison for six to eight years and can no longer hold government positions for the corruption case.
Roderick Paulate and Bajamunde were also ordered to pay the government P1.109 million and interest of 6% per year.
In the case of falsification of public documents, the court sentenced Paulate to imprisonment from six months to six years and a fine of P10,000 (each of the eight counts).
Bajamunde was acquitted in that case.
Roderick Paulate was also sentenced to imprisonment of six months to eight years and a fine of P10,000 for the charge of falsification by a public officer.
During the trial, Paulate explained that the certifications from the schools and barangays are proof that the job contractors are fictitious persons.
But for the Sandiganbayan justices, it said that “this does not amount to a convincing defense that deserves credence from this court.”
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