- Petitioner
- Gina Diaz y Jaud
- Respondent
- People
- Citation
- G.R. No. 171121
- Court
- Supreme Court
- Division
- Third Division
- Ponente
- Chico-Nazario, J.
- Decided
- August 26, 2008
Whether petitioner is guilty of estafa under Article 315(1)(b) of the Revised Penal Code for allegedly misappropriating P265,900.00 received in trust
Summary
The Supreme Court affirmed Gina Diaz's conviction for estafa under Article 315(1)(b) of the Revised Penal Code but modified her sentence. Diaz received P265,900.00 from Erwina Sanuele-Orallo under a trust arrangement for money-lending business, with obligation to return upon demand. When Sanuele-Orallo demanded repayment, Diaz failed to return the money. The Court distinguished this from a simple loan, finding it was a trust relationship where Diaz had juridical possession to lend money to others but with corresponding obligation to return the principal amount. All elements of estafa with abuse of confidence were proven: receipt in trust, misappropriation evidenced by failure to account upon demand, prejudice to complainant, and demand made. The Court corrected the minimum term of the indeterminate sentence from 6 years to 4 years and 2 months of prision correccional, while maintaining the maximum of 20 years reclusion temporal, and upheld the order to pay P265,900.00 actual damages.