G.R. No. 43120; July 27, 1935
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS, plaintiff-appellee, vs. BASILIO SILVALLANA, defendant-appellant.

FACTS

The accused, Basilio Silvallana, was the assistant postmaster of Buguey, Cagayan, and acted as postmaster from July 1 to 23, 1934. A Philippine Postal Savings Bank treasury warrant for P30, payable to Francisco P. Peralta, was mailed to the postmaster of Gonzaga for delivery but never reached its destination. The warrant was later found in the accused’s possession, altered to show the amount as P230 and bearing forged endorsements of “Francisco P. Peralta” and “Pedro Siggaoat.” The accused claimed he cashed the warrant for a bearer named Pedro Siggaoat, using P38.50 of his personal funds to cover a shortage in post office cash. Investigation revealed no such person as Pedro Siggaoat existed, and the payee, Peralta, denied receiving or endorsing the warrant. Evidence showed the mail for Gonzaga passed through the Buguey post office, and a paper with practice signatures was found in the accused’s possession.

ISSUE

Whether the accused is guilty of the complex crime of malversation of public funds through falsification of a public document.

RULING

Yes. The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction but modified the penalty. The accused was found guilty of the complex crime under Article 48 of the Revised Penal Code. The falsification (the more serious crime) was committed to facilitate the malversation. The penalty for falsification under Article 171 (prision mayor maximum period and a fine) was applied in its maximum period. The Court sentenced the accused to an indeterminate sentence of eight years and one day of prision mayor as minimum to ten years, eight months, and one day of prision mayor as maximum, plus a fine of P500. The accessory penalty of perpetual special disqualification is inherent in the penalty of prision mayor.

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