May a complaint affidavit notarized in a foreign jurisdiction be the basis for a preliminary investigation?
Facts:
Upon complaint by NBA Properties, Inc., the NBI conducted an investigation where it was discovered that petitioners were engaged in the manufacture, printing, sale, and distribution of counterfeit NBA garment products. The NBI recommended petitioners' prosecution for unfair competition under Article 189 of the Revised Penal Code.
In a Special Power of Attorney, Rick Welts, the President of NBA Properties, Inc., constituted a local law firm as the companys attorney-in-fact, and to act for and on behalf of the company, in the filing of criminal, civil and administrative complaints, among others. The Special Power of Attorney was notarized by a notary public of New York County and certified by the County Clerk and Clerk of the Supreme Court of the State of New York. A Philippine Consul of the Consulate General of the Philippines in New York, authenticated the certification. The company president also executed a Complaint-Affidavit before the same notary public of New York.
In a Special Power of Attorney, Rick Welts, the President of NBA Properties, Inc., constituted a local law firm as the companys attorney-in-fact, and to act for and on behalf of the company, in the filing of criminal, civil and administrative complaints, among others. The Special Power of Attorney was notarized by a notary public of New York County and certified by the County Clerk and Clerk of the Supreme Court of the State of New York. A Philippine Consul of the Consulate General of the Philippines in New York, authenticated the certification. The company president also executed a Complaint-Affidavit before the same notary public of New York.
Petitioners filed a Motion to Quash the Information on the following grounds: (1) the facts charged do not constitute an offense and (2) the court has no jurisdiction over the offense charged or the person of the accused. Petitioners argue that the fiscal should have dismissed Welts's complaint because under the rules, the complaint must be sworn to before the prosecutor and the copy on record appears to be only a fax transmittal.
The prosecutor filed his Comment/Opposition to the motion to quash, stating that he has the original copy of the complaint, and that complainant has an attorney-in-fact to represent it. The prosecutor also contended that the State is entitled to prosecute the offense even without the participation of the private offended party, as the crime charged is a public crime.
The trial court sustained the prosecutions arguments and denied petitioners motion to quash.
Held:
Nowhere in the Rule 117 is there any mention of the defect in the complaint filed before the fiscal and the complainants capacity to sue as grounds for a motion to quash.
For another, under Section 3, Rule 112 of the 1985 Rules of Criminal Procedure, a complaint is substantially sufficient if it states the known address of the respondent, it is accompanied by complainant's affidavit and his witnesses and supporting documents, and the affidavits are sworn to before any fiscal, state prosecutor or government official authorized to administer oath, or in their absence or unavailability, a notary public who must certify that he personally examined the affiants and that he is satisfied that they voluntarily executed and understood their affidavits. All these have been duly satisfied in the complaint filed before Prosecution Attorney Aileen Marie S. Gutierrez. It must be noted that even the absence of an oath in the complaint does not necessarily render it invalid. Want of oath is a mere defect of form, which does not affect the substantial rights of the defendant on the merits.
For another, under Section 3, Rule 112 of the 1985 Rules of Criminal Procedure, a complaint is substantially sufficient if it states the known address of the respondent, it is accompanied by complainant's affidavit and his witnesses and supporting documents, and the affidavits are sworn to before any fiscal, state prosecutor or government official authorized to administer oath, or in their absence or unavailability, a notary public who must certify that he personally examined the affiants and that he is satisfied that they voluntarily executed and understood their affidavits. All these have been duly satisfied in the complaint filed before Prosecution Attorney Aileen Marie S. Gutierrez. It must be noted that even the absence of an oath in the complaint does not necessarily render it invalid. Want of oath is a mere defect of form, which does not affect the substantial rights of the defendant on the merits.
In this case, Welts's Complaint-Affidavit contains an acknowledgement by Notary Public Nicole Brown of the State of New York that the same has been subscribed and sworn to before her on February 12, 1998, duly authenticated by the Philippine Consulate. While the copy on record of the complaint-affidavit appears to be merely a photocopy thereof, Prosecution Attorney Gutierrez stated that complainants representative will present the authenticated notarized original in court, and Prosecutor Guray manifested that the original copy is already on hand. It is apt to state at this point that the prosecutor enjoys the legal presumption of regularity in the performance of his duties and functions, which in turn gives his report the presumption of accuracy.
Moreover, records show that there are other supporting documents from which the prosecutor based his recommendation.
Consequently, if the information is valid on its face, and there is no showing of manifest error, grave abuse of discretion and prejudice on the part of public prosecutor, as in the present case, the trial court should respect such determination.
More importantly, the crime of Unfair Competition punishable under Article 189 of the Revised Penal Code is a public crime. It is essentially an act against the State and it is the latter which principally stands as the injured party. The complainant's capacity to sue in such case becomes immaterial. (Sasot vs. People, G.R. No. 143193. June 29, 2005)
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