BSP arrests 2 men for mutilating coins
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) made good its threat of going after anyone who will disrespect Philippine coins and banknotes by arresting two Filipinos caught in the act of currency mutilation.
In a statement over the weekend, the BSP said its Currency Management Sector (CMS) with the National Bureau of Investigation Lucena District Office (NBI-LUCDO) arrested suspects Ronnie Espiritu and Rodolfo Corral in Real, Quezon, for currency mutilation last
March 14.
The BSP said the joint team arrested Espiritu “while in the act of committing the crime of defacing and removing the core metal of the 10-piso coin.”
BSP said that Corral was the one who uploaded a coin mutilation video in his social media account last January. “The video went viral and attracted the attention of authorities. Several mutilated Philippine coins and implements used by the suspects were found in plain view and subsequently seized by the CMS-BSP and the NBI-LUCDO,” said the BSP.
The BSP and NBI have slapped charges against the suspects before the Office of the Provincial Prosecutor, Lucena City for violation of Presidential Decree No. 247 (Prohibiting and Penalizing Defacement, Mutilation, Tearing, Burning or Destruction of Central Bank Notes and Coins) and Republic Act No. 10175 (An Act Defining Cybercrime, Providing for the Prevention, Investigation, Suppression and the Imposition of Penalties and for Other Purposes).
The suspects are currently under the custody of the NBI-LUCDO, said the BSP.
The central bank has been consistent in issuing warnings to the public to stop malicious actions or misdeeds that destroys the country’s currency, and that they could go to prison for these criminal acts.
These criminal acts include defacement, mutilation, tearing, burning or destruction of banknotes and coins. All are punishable by a fine of not more than P20,000 and/or imprisonment of not more than five years.
The BSP is vested with police authority to investigate, make arrests, and conduct searches and seizures in accordance with law, for the purpose of maintaining the integrity of the currency.
The following are also prohibited acts under the law: Writing or putting marks on banknotes; willful tearing, burning, or destruction, in any manner, of Philippine currency; willful and excessive folding or crumpling that results in a breakdown of the structure and limpness of the banknote; willfully causing multiple random folds across the entire banknote that toughly affect its visual appearance; and willfully exposing banknotes or coins to chemicals or other materials resulting in the acceleration of the defacement, destruction, or natural wear and tear of the note or coin.