Former Maasim Mayor Aniceto Lopez Jr. and Municipal Treasurer Moises Magallona Jr. of Sarangani province have been found guilty by the Sandiganbayan Sixth Division of illegal exaction for the illegal charging of sticker fees back in 2005.

Lopez Jr. and Magallona Jr. were convicted for violating Article 213, paragraph (2), sub-paragraph (a) of the Revised Penal Code on Illegal Exaction.

They were sentenced to suffer imprisonment of two years, four months and one day of prision correccional as minimum to eight years of prision mayor as maximum for each of their charges, with perpetual disqualification from holding any public office. They were also ordered to pay a fine of P6,000.

Both of them were entrusted with the collection of taxes, licenses, fees and other imposts. However, they demanded and collected P75 per sticker fee during the registration of motorboats and fishing boats from January to June 2005, even though the sticker fee is not authorized under Municipal Tax Ordinance No. 04-003.

During the trial, the prosecution offered a memorandum signed by Lopez Jr. which mandated the imposition of fees for official sticker. Magallona used this memorandum to collect the assailed sticker fees.

The prosecution also offered Municipal Tax Ordinance No. 04-003, which provides that the municipality has no authority to impose sticker fees from fisherfolks.

For his part, Magallona insisted that the Municipal Tax Ordinance No. 04-003 was not yet in effect during the time the sticker fees were collected. However, the anti-graft court said the effectivity date of the ordinance is of no moment since there is no ordinance enacted that allows the collection of sticker fees.

At the same time, the accused failed to issue proper receipts for the sticker fees that were collected.

The 45-page decision was penned by Associate Justice Kevin Narce Vivero with the concurrence of Sixth Division Chairperson Sarah Jane Fernandez and Associate Justice Karl Miranda.