Republic of the Philippines

Department of Environment and Natural Resources

PROVINCIAL ENVIRONMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCES
OFFICE
Office of the PENR Officer

MEMORANDUM

FOR : THE REGIONAL EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

DENR Caraga Region
Ambago, Butuan City

FROM : THE PENR OFFICER

PENRO Agusan del Norte
Tiniwisan, Butuan City

SUBJECT : REPORT ON THE SUMMARY ADMINISTRATIVE

ADJUDICATION PROCEEDINGS ON THE APPREHENDED
240 PCS. (5,973.33BD.FT.) OF LAUAN LUMBER AND ONE (1)
UNIT ISUZU TEN-WHEELER WING VAN COLOR BLUE
LOCATED AT PUROK-4, BRGY. BIT-OS, BUTUAN CITY
DATE : MARCH 15, 2023

Respectfully forwarded is the Memorandum of CENRO Nasipit dated March 10, 2023
submitting the CSW report relative to the above-mentioned subject with pertinent enclosures
duly received by this office on March 13, 2023. The first memorandum of CENRO-Nasipit
dated February 9, 2023 was returned by this office through memorandum dated February 20,
2023 for some important instruction to be complied with concerning on their
recommendation without citing the facts and the policy on which it is based.

Based on the report, on January 11, 2023 at 11:10 o’clock in the morning, the team
from Bit-os ENR MIAC received a phone call from a lawin patroller informing them that a
one unit Isuzu ten wheeler wing van with plate number NEO 3373 is transporting
undocumented forest products. The team immediately conducted forest products verification
checkpoint at Purok 4, Brgy. Bit-os, Butuan City which led to the apprehension of the said
vehicle loaded with 240 pcs. (5,973.33bd.ft.) of Lauan lumber. Upon determination by the
team in accordance with the procedure provided under DAO-97-32, the forest products were
transported without pertinent documents issued by DENR. A criminal complaint was then
filed by FT I/TL Bit-os MIAC Sherwin O. Bacalso on January 11, 2023 against Israel Barrera
Siton and two John Does (at large) at Butuan City Prosecutor’s office under NPS Docket No.
XIII-01-INQ-23A-0014.

The apprehended forest products and the conveyance were deposited at CENRO-
Nasipit at Brgy. Talisay, Municipality of Nasipit under the protective custody of FT I/For.
Milo Rey N. Insong.
 A seizure proceeding was conducted on January 17, 2023 by seizure officer CENRO
Joseph Leo E. Oconer and determined that the offense was committed and the offender was
probably guilty thereof, thus a seizure order was issued with seizure order CN Contro No:
2023-001 E-FMS No: 2023-160209-F334

On January 19, 2023, a summary administrative adjudication proceeding was

conducted. During the proceedings, the following circumstances were noted as follows:

1. Mr. Vladimir Talingting (owner of the conveyance) was represented by his father
Vener Talingting by virtue of a Special Power of Attorney executed by the owner
in favor of his father. During the hearing, the agent alleged that they did not know
the transaction entered into by the driver to load and transport illegal forest
products and further alleged that they just newly hired Mr. Siton as driver of the
Wing Van. Mr. Vener Talingting submitted to the hearing officer the affidavit of
the owner containing therein the defense of no consent and knowledge of the
illegal transport made by the driver. The Driver failed to attend on the scheduled
hearing considering that he was still detained in the detention facility of PNP
Police Station 1 of Butuan City and in leu of appearing at the hearing, he executed
his affidavit and submitted by Vener Talingting.

2. The seized forest products were recommended for confiscation in favor of the
government since the same were transported and possessed without the requisite
permit /authority issued by DENR in violations of section 77 of Presidential
Decree 705.

3. As to the conveyance, the presiding officer informed the party that thorough
evaluation on the documents must be conducted before rendering a
recommendation.

4. On January 31, 2023, a technical meeting was conducted at CENRO Nasipit

attended by the members of CENRO Technical Working Group and Mr. Vener
Talingting togeteher with his legal counsel Atty. Christopher C. Amerilla.

5. After evaluation on the reports submitted by the DENR apprehending team and
the affidavits submitted by the owner and driver, the presiding officer
recommended that a confiscation order be issued in favor of the government on
the apprehended Lauan lumbers with a total volume of 5, 973.33 and the
conveyance one (1) unit Isuzu Ten-Wheeler Wing Van Truck color blue bearing
plate number NEO 3373 for failure of the owner to overcome the disputable
presumption provided under section 7 of DAO 97-32, to wit:

(a) Mr. Vladimir Talingting (owner of the conveyance) in his affidavit alleges that
he did not instruct nor give consent to Mr. Israel Barrera Siton (driver) to enter the
dealing of the transport of the illegal forest products. However, the driver did not
 confirm nor affirm in his (driver) affidavit that the owner (Vladimir Talingting)
did not instruct nor consent to use the conveyance in the illegal transport of the
forest products. (b) The owner also mentioned in his affidavit that the driver was
just newly hired, however he (owner) failed to exercise due diligence to monitor
the driver’s activity who engages in the transport of goods. As owner of the
conveyance, he is duty bound to exercise extra ordinary diligence to ensure that
his conveyance would not be used in any illegal transport of goods. (c) the owner
did not even used all means to require his driver to appear before the office even
after his detention for his case, to give statement to support the defenses of the
owner but opted to submit his affidavit but same does not contain support on the
allegation made by the owner that indeed he had not willingly nor give consent by
providing his conveyance to transport the illegal forest products.

“3. DISPUTABLE PRESUMPTION- In administrative proceedings conducted

pursuant hereto, the following shall be considered presumption of fact and/ or
law taken as part of the evidence unless specifically controverted and
successfully overcome by preponderance of evidence.

a. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

b. The registered owner and/or operator / driver of a conveyance

used in the commission of the offense had full knowledge and
willingly participated therein by providing the conveyance for the
illegal purpose to which said conveyance was applied. In case the
registered owner of the conveyance is a partnership or
corporation, the partners and/ or officers thereof had full
knowledge of and granted authorization or issued instructions for
the use or application of the conveyance in the commission of the
offense.

c. Any forest products included within Section 2(a) hereof were

obtained from an illegal source.”

This office has no reason not to harmonize with the recommendation of the
hearing officer to confiscate the apprehended 240 pcs (5, 973.33 bd.ft) including the
one (1) unit Isuzu Ten Wheeler Wing Van color blue with plate number NEO 3373,
with supplementary reasons:

a. The driver in his affidavit mentioned that he received a message from

Facebook looking for truck for hire for Php 130, 000 and he immediately accepted the
offer. And he was instructed by the caller that somebody will meet him at Trento,
Agusan del Sur.
 This office finds the statement of the driver unbelievable for it is not a normal
act of a professional driver who is a driver of a Ten-Wheeler Wing Van for quite
some time to immediately accept the offer without giving first the money o part of the
money by the offeror and the offer was just made through Facebook without any
knowledge as to who is offering him the said transaction and then somebody will just
meet him at Trento, Agusan del Sur.

b. In the same affidavit, the driver stated that there were 20 armed men and he
was told by them that if he refused to load the lumber something wrong will happen to
him and to the unit.

This office finds the statement of the driver again unbelievable because the
apprehension took place at Barangay Bit-os, Butuan City, numerous municipalities
they passed during their trip but the driver did not even stop to report the incident of
coercion in any of the police station in the municipalities that they passed. And also,
the armed men were not accompanying him during the transport and why he did not
stop and report the incident. And during the actual apprehension with the assistance of
the PNP of Butuan, the driver never mentioned that he was coerced to transport the
illegal forest products.

Again, this office finds the act of the driver after the incident inconsistent and
hardly persuasive to be the reaction of someone who had just experienced the worst
day of his life.

Considering the afore-noted circumstances, this office concurs with the

recommendation of the hearing officer to confiscate the said vehicle together with the
forest products in violation of Section 77 of PD 705.

For information, record and issuance of confiscation order.

ACHILLES ANTHONY C. EBRON

Copy furnished:
-DENR, ARD-TS, AMBAGO BUTUAN CITY
-DENR, CENRO NASIPIT, AND
-FILE

Caraga, Philippines, 8600

E-mail: penro_agnor@yahoo.com | Telephone No. 817-9639