By JEFFREY G. DAMICOG
National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents arrested in Manila a convicted master forger who has been engaged in his craft for decades.
NBI spokesman Deputy Director Ferdinand Lavin identified the arrested suspect as Manuel Bala who is in his 60s.
Lavin said Bala, a notorious forger known as the “golden hand”, had already served time in prison after being convicted in 2000 for falsification of public documents.
Bala was arrested in Paco, Manila, last Oct. 5 by operatives of the NBI Anti-Organized and Transnational Crime Division (NBI-AOTCD).
Following his arrest, Bala was charged by a private individual with falsification under Article 172 in relation to Article 171 of the Revised Penal Code.
Lavin said the NBI operation stemmed from the request of the United States Embassy, particularly from Attache Isaiah Roland II of the Overseas Criminal Investigation (OCI) of the US State Department.
Prior to the suspect’s arrest, the US embassy confronted a couple, identified as Kevin Keith Fajardo and Jarra Rowella, for trying to apply for US visas using fraudulent documents.
Lavin said the OCI learned that the couple used fraudulently obtained passports since they are not married based on the Certificate of No Marriage (CENOMAR) from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
Also, Lavin said the embassy also verified with the Department of Trade and Industry that the business allegedly owned by Fajardo is non-existent.
“According to Jarra and Kevin, the falsified documents were provided by subject Manuel Bala who told them that it is easier for a married couple to get an approval for visa application, thus he paired the two,” the NBI said in a statement.
The couple also revealed to the NBI they were promised by Bala that he will hand over to them original documents at a hotel in Paco, Manila.
With this information, the NBI hatched an operation which led to the arrest of Bala.