- Petitioner
- People of the Philippines
- Respondent
- Virgie F. Dingal
- Citation
- G.R. No. 248374
- Court
- Supreme Court
- Division
- Second Division
- Decided
- September 28, 2022
Conviction for qualified theft and proper penalty imposition under amended Revised Penal Code
Summary
The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals' conviction of Virgie F. Dingal for qualified theft involving P4,750,494.96 stolen from University of Southern Philippines Foundation, Inc. The key issue was the proper penalty under the amended Revised Penal Code. The Court revised the penalty, applying RA 10951's adjusted property value thresholds for theft penalties. Since the stolen amount exceeded P2,200,000.00 and qualified theft requires a penalty two degrees higher due to grave abuse of confidence, the Court imposed reclusion perpetua without parole eligibility. The decision demonstrates the application of recent amendments to criminal penalty provisions and establishes precedent for calculating penalties under the revised theft provisions.