CANCER-stricken businessman and banker Celso delos Angeles Jr. and five other executives of the controversial Legacy Group of Companies are facing another syndicated estafa charge for allegedly defrauding a woman of her P5 million investment.

A panel of prosecutors of the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday found probable cause to indict respondents delos Angeles, Carolina Hinola, Namnama Pasetes, Arnel and Soledad Sulquiano, and Elvira Nebre for syndicated estafa.

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The panel however dismissed the charge for violation of BP 22 or bouncing checks law against them for lack of probable cause.

The information for syndicated estafa will be filed Friday before the Makati regional trial court.

In a resolution, the panel led by Senior State Prosecutor Emilie Fe delos Santos found that the "inner group of the LGC" led by delos Angeles unlawfully diverted the money collected from the proceeds of the sale of Legacy products, such as the "double-your-money" scheme offered to their investors, among them complainant Josephine Soriano, under a promise of exorbitant returns.

The DOJ said the respondents systematically collaborated to deceive the investors and plan holders of Legacy's pre-need firm Scholarship Plans Philippines Inc. (SPPI).

"We don't think that nobody at Legacy Consolidated Plans Inc. (LCPI) in his full capacity could stop the illegal rampage of respondent Celso (de los Angeles) at that time. What became illegal were not the products offered by LCPI, but the diversion of the money collected from the proceeds of the sale of these products," the resolution stated.

Prosecutors pointed out that the double-your-money scheme operates like the Ponzi scam, where money received and collected by the company were being used only to pay off huge returns of investments to earlier investors.

In dismissing the charge for violation of BP 22, the DOJ said the demand letter sent by complainant was merely a demand for the return of the money, thus "it is short of notice of dishonor required by law."

Based on records of the case, Soriano alleged that she had been enticed by one of the respondent (Sulquiano) to invest in an educational plan with SPPI for her daughter's secondary and college education.

After fully paying all three educational plans, Soriano was convinced to make further investments totaling P5-million under the LGC's "double-your-money" program, with the promise of doubling her money in three years' time.

Soriano said she was told that upon initial placement of her investment, she will immediately get 20 percent of the plan's maturity value, while the balance of 80 percent will be paid in 12 equal monthly installments through post-dated checks.

The checks issued to her, however, were returned for reason of "closed account" when presented for encashment. This prompted her to seek assistance before the National Bureau of Investigation.

Aside from Soriano, several other individuals have lodged a complaint before the DOJ against de Los Angeles, his relatives and other officials of the troubled Legacy Group for siphoned off millions of pesos from its plan holders and depositors. (JCV/Sunnex)