G.R. No. 3253
THE UNITED STATES, plaintiff‑appellee,
vs.
E. S. JOCKERS, defendant‑appellant

FACTS
– The accused was employed by Weingarten Brothers as a peddler on commission, entrusted with goods valued at ₱267.18 for sale in Manila.
– He promised to render an account the next day and, failing to do so, left Manila on 16 February 1906, taking the goods to outlying barrios.
– While absent he sold portions of his stock amounting to ₱37.77 but did not make an accounting of the proceeds; the remaining goods were later recovered and returned to the employers.
– The information charged the accused with estafa for all entrusted goods.

ISSUE
Whether the accused may be held liable for estafa on the basis of the entrusted goods, and if so, under which provision of the Penal Code the conviction should stand.

RULING
– The Court held that estafa under Article 535, paragraph 5 of the Penal Code applies to the goods that were not returned and for which no accounting was made (value ₱37.77). The conviction under Article 541 is void because the facts fall within Article 535.
– The accused is acquitted of estafa concerning the goods that were returned, as there is no intent to appropriate them.
– The Court affirmed conviction for estafa under Article 535, paragraph 5, sentencing the accused to three months’ arresto mayor, restitution of the unaccounted goods or their value, or subsidiary imprisonment upon insolvency, and payment of costs.
– No reduction of the penalty is allowed under Article 93 of the Ley Provisional, as the unaccounted value exceeds 100 pesetas.

Thus, the judgment of conviction under Article 541 is reversed; the conviction under Article 535, paragraph 5, stands.