A Manila court convicted a notorious conman who issued unfunded checks in exchange for a car owned by the Manila Times College of Subic Inc. (MTCSI).

Judge Carolina Esguerra of the Manila Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 14 found Ramon B. Leonor Jr. guilty of “other deceits” after the court found beyond reasonable doubt that the accused made fraudulent representation to evade the forfeiture of a Mercedez-Benz E350 car he acquired from the MTCSI for P5,209,104 through a “lease to own agreement.”

Records showed that the checks issued by Leonor for the months of October, November and December 2014, representing his monthly installments for the car, were dishonored by the bank for insufficiency of funds.

Leonor issued the checks to replace the Asian United Bank (AUB) checks that he previously issued as partial payment for the vehicle. The AUB checks bounced.

Under the lease to own agreement, it was specific that if any of the checks issued by the accused fails to make good any monthly leasing fee, all previous fees shall be forfeited, and he has to return the vehicle.

Leonor failed to make good his checks and refused to return the car despite the

demand letter presented by the private complainant.

In the same ruling, the court acquitted the accused in Criminal Case 482918-19-CR for violation of Batas Pambansa (BP) 22 or the “Bouncing Checks Law” because of reasonable doubt as the demand letter of the complainant was not personally received by Leonar but by his household help.

The court pointed out though that Leonor’s acquittal for violation of BP 22 did not erase his obligation to the MTCSI, saying that the bounced checks he issued constitute an evidence of indebtedness and a veritable proof of an obligation that can be used in lieu of and for the same purpose as a promissory note.

The court affirmed the complainant’s stand that Leonor made a fraudulent representation when he issued the replacement checks to evade the forfeiture provisions of the lease to own agreement.

“From these overt acts, it is clear that indeed, the accused made the fraudulent representation that said checks are good as he knew it will enable him to skirt the forfeiture provisions of the ‘Lease to Own Agreement’,” the ruling said.

Police said that Leonor has a string of alleged similar swindling complaints.

The Quezon City Metropolitan

Trial Court also found Leonor guilty in a case filed in 2013 for falsifying public documents by forging the signature of two persons long dead.

“It is undisputed by the evidence that spouses Ceferino and Virginia Pila’s signatures in the questioned Deed of Real Estate Mortgage dated Feb. 8, 2013 were forged,” Judge Don Ace Mariano Alagar said in his decision.

Leonor was sentenced to arresto mayor of four months and one day to a maximum of three years, six months and 21 days. He was also ordered to pay a fine of P5,000.

Judge Ma. Teresa de GuzmanAlvarez of the Caloocan City Regional Trial Court Branch 131 also ordered Leonor’s arrest for skipping his arraignment in a violation against women and children complaint.

In November 2015, Leonor was arrested by members of the Quezon City Police District-Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit by virtue of a warrant of arrest issued by Alvarez.

Leonor was charged with violating the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their children Law for beating up his pregnant live-in partner in January 2014 after she confronted him for loaning the property of the woman’s family without them knowing it.

Leonor owns the real development firms One National Realty and One Glad. He also owns Tradefocus, a company engaged in the sale of herbal medicines and coffee. It turned out; however, the property business was a scam because it involved questionable lands.