Multitel owners charged with code violations

The Makati Prosecutors Office has charged Multinational International Holdings Inc., owned by spouses Saturnino and Rosario Baladjay, with violation of the registration requirements of the Securities Regulation Code.

An official of the Securities and Exchange Commission said the corporate watchdog has received word that its effort to go after Multitel yielded positive results as the Makati prosecutor has found the pseudo-investment firm guilty of breaching Sect. 8.1 of the SRC.

Under this provision, no security shall be sold or distributed without a registration statement duly filed with and approved by the SEC.

The prosecutor is now preparing the charge sheet which shall be endorsed to the regional trial court to determine whether the charges leveled against the officers of the Multitel group have basis.

If found guilty, Rosario and Saturnino and other responsible officers of Multitel face seven to 21 years of imprisonment or a fine of P50,000 to P5 million, or both in the discretion of the court.

The move is in response to the complaint filed by the SEC against Multitel to ensure the criminal prosecution of erring individuals and to send a strong signal to the public that the corporate watchdog will not tolerate any fraudulent activity.

The Multitel Group’s modus operandi was to offer high interest rates of as much as 15 percent a month for a six-month placement of P100,000. The company was issued a cease-and-desist order in January 2002 for offering investment contracts without prior registration with the SEC.

Thousands of investors of Multitel have yet to get their money and other promised payments back. A general membership meeting scheduled for yesterday and supposedly called by the Baladjays was cancelled, making investors of Multitel believe that their money will never be returned to them.

Multitel reportedly scheduled the membership meeting yesterday at 6 p.m. at the Quirino Grandstand.

The case filed by the SEC is apart from the individual estafa cases that Multitel investors have filed against the Baladjays.

The SEC is encouraging other aggrieved investors of Multitel to come out in the open and file complaints with the courts to build an airtight case against the Baladjays.

Among those that were victimized by Multitel are government retirees and employees, and physicians from St. Lukes Hospital, Mary Chiles Hospital and the Manila Sanitarium.

The SEC estimates that the Multitel Group collected between P20 billion and P25 billion from various individuals all over the country. The group reportedly employs about 600 agents or what they term as counselors. One counselor was said to handle as much as P700 million worth of accounts.

According to the SEC, word of mouth and the payment of instant cash attracted investors to part with their hard-earned money. – Zinnia dela Peña