- Petitioner
- People
- Respondent
- Ignacio
- Citation
- G.R. No. L-21735
- Court
- Supreme Court
- Division
- En Banc
- Ponente
- Bengzon, J.
- Decided
- January 30, 1965
Proper application of Indeterminate Sentence Law for complex crime of estafa through falsification of commercial document
Summary
Jose Ignacio y Santos was prosecuted for estafa through falsification of a PNB check worth P4,608.62. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced by the Court of First Instance of Manila to an indeterminate sentence of 1 year, 8 months and 1 day to 4 years, 9 months and 11 days imprisonment, plus indemnity and fine. On appeal, the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment, ruling that the trial court properly applied the Indeterminate Sentence Law. The Court held that for the complex crime, the penalty for falsification of commercial document should be applied in its maximum period, and the minimum sentence was correctly set within the prescribed range. The mitigating circumstance of guilty plea was properly considered only for the maximum term, not the minimum term determination.