People v. Avendaño
REITERATIONFacts
The Antecedents: Six (6) separate informations for Illegal Recruitment of approximately 38 workers were filed against appellant Abelardo Avendaño y Crespo. The informations alleged that Avendaño, conspiring with Carmelito Soriano, Jr. and others, recruited and promised employment abroad for a fee without the required license or authority from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). Procedural History: Upon arraignment, Avendaño pleaded not guilty. The cases were consolidated and jointly tried. The trial court found Avendaño guilty beyond reasonable doubt of illegal recruitment in large scale, constituting economic sabotage, in three cases, and of simple illegal recruitment in the other three cases. He was sentenced accordingly. Avendaño appealed the decision. The Petition: The accused appealed, assigning as errors the trial court's alleged disregard of defense evidence and failure to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
Issue(s)
Whether the accused-appellant is guilty of illegal recruitment in large scale and simple illegal recruitment. Whether the trial court erred in appreciating only the evidence of the prosecution and disregarding the evidence of the defense. Whether the prosecution failed to prove the guilt of the accused-appellant beyond reasonable doubt.
Ruling
The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the trial court in toto, finding the accused-appellant guilty of large-scale illegal recruitment in Criminal Cases Nos. 6113, 6114 and 6125, and of simple illegal recruitment in Criminal Case Nos. 6131, 6143 and 6148. The penalties imposed by the trial court were found to be in accordance with law.
Ratio Decidendi
On the guilt of the accused-appellant for illegal recruitment and its classification: The Court found that the accused-appellant, Abelardo C. Avendaño, conspired with his co-accused to illegally recruit job applicants for overseas employment, collecting fees without the necessary license. The Court rejected Avendaño's defense, emphasizing that MAINDECO was not licensed to recruit. Applying Article 38(b) of the Labor Code, the Court classified the offenses as large scale in some cases (Criminal Cases Nos. 6113-MN, 6114-MN, and 6125-MN) and simple illegal recruitment in others (Criminal Case No. 6131-MN, 6143-MN, and 6148-MN), based on the number of victims. On the alleged disregard of defense evidence: The Court found no reversible error in the trial court's appreciation of the evidence. The evidence presented by the prosecution clearly established the conspiracy and the illegal recruitment activities of the accused-appellant. The defense offered by Avendaño was found to be unbelievable and self-serving. On the failure to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt: The Court concluded that the prosecution had proven the guilt of the accused-appellant beyond reasonable doubt, based on the evidence presented.
Main Doctrine
Illegal recruitment committed by a syndicate or in large scale constitutes economic sabotage, punishable by life imprisonment and a fine of P100,000.00. Simple illegal recruitment is penalized with imprisonment of not less than four years nor more than eight years or a fine of not less than P20,000.00 nor more than P100,000.00, or both.