Guam Chief Judge Frances M. Tydingco Gatewood said the charge of conspiracy against Haydn Villegas was not barred by the statute of limitations.
The court said it found that the last overt act occurred on Jan. 17, 2007, and the grand jury returned the indictment against Villegas on Dec. 16, 2010 which was within five years of the last over act.
Villegas argued the last alleged overt act occurred on or about May 13, 2005, when co-defendant “Ana Villegas transacted and caused to be transacted at PNB foreign exchange a ‘counter’ check in the amount of $7,500 which check was later returned based on insufficient funds….”
The prosecution disagreed and asserted that the last overt act was the defendants’ maintenance of the bankruptcy suit.
“If the maintenance of the bankruptcy suit was in furtherance of the conspiracy, then the conspiracy charge is timely,” Gatewood stated.
“Looking at the scope of the conspiracy, the court agrees with the government and finds that the maintenance of the bankruptcy action was part of the material scheme to defraud and obtain money from PNB,” Gatewood added.
Last April, Gatewood ordered a consolidated jury trial of the Villegas couple charged with conspiracy and wire fraud in connection with the more than $109,000 losses that the Philippine National Bank incurred when checks with insufficient funds were processed through its system.
The couple had denied the charges.
In July 2010, Armilaine Salamat, the former manager of PNB Express Remittance Center, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of wire fraud. She has yet to be sentenced.
The jury trial of the Villegas couple has yet to be scheduled.
Salamat will testify in the jury trial.
