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Deguito says trusting Lorenzo Tan a ‘mistake,’ denies receiving money from heist

April 4, 2016 | 11:21pm

MANILA, Philippines – Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. ex-branch manager Maia Santos Deguito on Tuesday told the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee that RCBC President Lorenzo Tan knew about the laundering of $81 million stolen from Bangladesh Central Bank.

In a statement, Deguito clarified that she has no knowledge in any conspiracy, adding that it was a mistake to trust Tan.

“If there is a conspiracy, as some honorable senators have publicly stated, I have no knowledge of it. If I had made mistakes... that I believe and trusted the bank President Mr. Lorenzo Tan; that I followed him when he said I should “take care” of his friend; that I relied on the fact that Mr. Tan could not have been unaware of a transaction that has been labeled the biggest bank heist in the history of the world,” Deguito said.

The former RCBC employee denied that she knows another businessman suspected to be the beneficiary of the banking heist, Weikang Xu. She also said she did not deliver any money to Solaire and did not receive a single cent.

“In the name of my children, I did not get a single cent,” she said.

Deguito, addressing the Senate committee, insisted that she was not a major player in the heist as she was only a bank manager fulfilling her duties. She described herself a “scapegoat” and “pawn” used in the banking heist.

“On hindsight, I have unwittingly allowed myself to be set up as the scapegoat when all I wanted was to advance my career, boost my performance as a bank manager, and together with my husband, help provide for my family. These are legitimate goals of every working mother,” Deguito said.

“I am but a pawn in a high-stakes chess game played by giants in the international banking and high finance. If this committee is looking for the “grandmaster," it is not me. The line runs much higher and involves persons with much more clout and authority than a simple bank manager with modest capabilities has,” she added.

Deguito also addressed her accusers which include casino junket Kim Wong as well as the RCBC management, saying she has no resources to pull off the crime involving billions of pesos. She said that only high officials of RCBC with the help of wealthy businessmen can make the crime possible.

“Other resource persons have laid practically all of the blame on me for the alleged money laundering, as if I had the resources at my mid-management level to put all the pieces in place for a crime involving almost 4 billion pesos,” Deguito said.

“Truly, a crime of this magnitude could be possible only with the participation of people from the highest officialdom of RCBC, in cahoots with extremely wealthy businessmen whose far-reaching powers and influence span several countries,” she added.

Meanwhile, Deguito apologized to the Senate for skipping the third hearing. She said she is willing to cooperate in resolving the case but she cited that her health has been affected by mental and emotional stress.

“I had wanted to participate in every hearing, not only to air my side but – more importantly – to help this committee in my own humble way to get to the truth of the matter regarding the money of the Bangladeshi people. My health, however, has taken a turn for the worse the past two weeks due to the emotional and mental stress that started since February 9 and which have continued non-stop until now,” the former bank manager said.