LTO probes illegal ownership transfers of seized vehicles
The Land Transportation Office (LTO) on Friday said it has started to investigate 40 district offices over the questionable transfers of ownership of motor vehicles confiscated in police operations.
In a statement, Transportation Assistant Secretary Vigor Mendoza II, LTO chief, said he will order district office heads to explain after he learned of the matter from the Philippine National Police.
Mendoza said the PNP described at least 40 incidents as “technical carnapping” and both agencies are coordinating to run after individuals and groups engaged in the crime.
The scheme, according to Mendoza, involved recovered vehicles being illegally transferred to new owners, with new duplicate certificates of registration being issued alongside proper documentation to simulate a valid transfer of ownership.
Based on the LTO data, illegal transfers of ownership of motor vehicles seized in various police operations were uncovered in several regions, including 15 in Caraga; eight in Zamboanga Peninsula; four each in Cagayan Valley and Davao; two each in Ilocos, Central Luzon and Northern Mindanao; and one each in Calabarzon, Eastern Visayas and Cordillera Administrative Region.
Mendoza said the initial investigation already identified the 40 vehicles involved.
“We will be issuing show-cause orders against the new registered owners of these motor vehicles,” he said.
“We will not let this pass. We will not allow the LTO to be used in illegal activities such as this,” he added.
Aside from charges of forgery of public documents, LTO employees found involved in the modus are liable for administrative charges that come with dismissal penalties.
On May 9, President Marcos signed Republic Act No. 11235, amending the Motorcycle Crime Prevention Act, erstwhile called “doble-plaka law” (double plates law), which required transfer of ownership within 20 working days.
An earlier statement from the Presidential Communications Office said: “RA 11235 mandated that motorcycle owners register their motorcycles with the [LTO] within five days of acquiring ownership.”
“From a penalty of imprisonment or a fine of not less than P20,000 but not more than P50,000, or both, the new law reduced it to a fine of not more than P5,000,” the PCO said.
It was also pointed out that no confiscation can be done “solely on the basis of the buyer’s noncompliance with the law’s requirements.”
The law also required dealers to report “all motorcycle repossessions to the LTO and submit an annual status report of repossessed units under their custody.”
