A man has been arrested in San Joaquin, Iloilo for allegedly producing and selling fake drivers' licenses, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said on Friday, Aug. 2.
The NBI identified him as Jay-R A. Pandapatan who was arrested last Tuesday, July 30, during an entrapment operation conducted by operatives of the NBI Western Visayas Regional Office (NBI-WEVRO) in Barangay Siwaragan in San Joaquin town.
During the transaction with the undercover NBI agent, the bureau said that Pandapatan was “caught in flagrante delicto (in the act) receiving the marked money.”
“According to the information, Subject was offering his services in facilitating the processing and issuance of the said government ID, for a fee ranging from P8,000 to P15,000 without the need to undergo the proper process and submitting necessary requirements,” the NBI said.
It said the information was revealed by an informant whose driver’s license that he received from Pandapatan got confiscated and found to be fake.
“Certification from the LTO (Land Transportation Office) revealed that the LTO driver’s license card does not exist in the LTO IT System,” it noted.
With his arrest, Pandapatan was charged with falsification of public documents, estafa, and violation of Republic Act (RA) 4136, the Land Transportation and Traffic Code, in relation to the Cybercrime Law.