PRESIDENTIAL DECREE No.

1612
ANTI-FENCING LAW OF 1979
WHEREAS,
reports
from
law
enforcement agencies reveal that there
is rampant robbery and thievery of
government and private properties;
WHEREAS, such robbery and thievery
have become profitable on the part of
the lawless elements because of the
existence of ready buyers, commonly
known
as
fence,
of
stolen
properties;lawphil.net
WHEREAS, under existing law, a fence
can be prosecuted only as an accessory
after the fact and punished lightly;
WHEREAS, is imperative to impose
heavy penalties on persons who profit
by the effects of the crimes of robbery
and theft.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E.
MARCOS, President of the Philippines by
virtue of the powers vested in me by
the Constitution, do hereby order and
decree as part of the law of the land the
following:
Section 1. Title. This decree shall be
known as the Anti-Fencing Law.
Section 2. Definition of Terms. The
following terms shall mean as follows:
(a) "Fencing" is the act of any person
who, with intent to gain for himself or
for another, shall buy, receive, possess,

keep, acquire, conceal, sell or dispose

of, or shall buy and sell, or in any other
manner deal in any article, item, object
or anything of value which he knows, or
should be known to him, to have been
derived from the proceeds of the crime
of robbery or theft.
(b) "Fence" includes any person, firm,
association corporation or partnership
or
other
organization
who/which
commits the act of fencing.
Section 3. Penalties. Any person guilty
of fencing shall be punished as
hereunder indicated:
(a) The penalty of prision mayor, if the
value of the property involved is more
than 12,000 pesos but not exceeding
22,000 pesos; if the value of such
property exceeds the latter sum, the
penalty provided in this paragraph shall
be imposed in its maximum period,
adding one year for each additional
10,000 pesos; but the total penalty
which may be imposed shall not exceed
twenty years. In such cases, the penalty
shall be termed reclusion temporal and
the
accessory
penalty
pertaining
thereto provided in the Revised Penal
Code shall also be imposed.
(b) The penalty of prision correccional
in its medium and maximum periods, if
the value of the property robbed or
stolen is more than 6,000 pesos but not
exceeding 12,000 pesos.
(c) The penalty of prision correccional in
its minimum and medium periods, if the

value of the property involved is more

than 200 pesos but not exceeding
6,000 pesos.
(d) The penalty of arresto mayor in its
medium period to prision correccional in
its minimum period, if the value of the
property involved is over 50 pesos but
not exceeding 200 pesos.
(e) The penalty of arresto mayor in its
medium period if such value is over five
(5) pesos but not exceeding 50 pesos.
(f) The penalty of arresto mayor in its
minimum period if such value does not
exceed 5 pesos.
Section 4. Liability of Officials of
Juridical Persons. If the fence is a
partnership,
firm,
corporation
or
association, the president or the
manager or any officer thereof who
knows or should have known the
commission of the offense shall be
liable.
Section 5. Presumption of Fencing.
Mere possession of any good, article,
item, object, or anything of value which
has been the subject of robbery or
thievery shall be prima facie evidence
of fencing.
Section
6. Clearance/Permit
to
Sell/Used Second Hand Articles. For
purposes of this Act, all stores,
establishments or entities dealing in the
buy and sell of any good, article item,
object of anything of value obtained
from an unlicensed dealer or supplier

thereof, shall before offering the same

for sale to the public, secure the
necessary clearance or permit from the
station commander of the Integrated
National Police in the town or city where
such store, establishment or entity is
located.
The
Chief
of
Constabulary/Director
General,
Integrated
National
Police
shall
promulgate such rules and regulations
to carry out the provisions of this
section. Any person who fails to secure
the clearance or permit required by this
section or who violates any of the
provisions of the rules and regulations
promulgated thereunder shall upon
conviction
be
punished
as
a
fence. lawphi1.net
Section 7. Repealing Clause. All laws
or parts thereof, which are inconsistent
with the provisions of this Decree are
hereby
repealed
or
modified
accordingly.
Section 8. Effectivity. This Decree shall
take effect upon approval.
Done in the City of Manila, this 2nd day
of March, in the year of Our Lord,
nineteen hundred and seventy-nine.
RULES
AND
REGULATIONS
TO
CARRY OUT THE PROVISIONS OF
SECTION
6
OF
PRESIDENTIAL
DECREE NO. 1612, KNOWN AS THE
ANTI-FENCING LAW.
Pursuant to Section 6 of Presidential
Decree No. 1612, known as the AntiFencing Law, the following rules and

regulations are hereby promulgated to

govern
the
issuance
of
clearances/permits
to
sell
used
secondhand articles obtained from an
unlicensed dealer or supplier thereof:
I. Definition of Terms
1. "Used secondhand article" shall refer
to any goods, article, item, object or
anything of value obtained from an
unlicensed
dealer
or
supplier,
regardless of whether the same has
actually or in fact been used.
2. "Unlicensed dealer/supplier" shall
refer to any persons, partnership, firm,
corporation, association or any other
entity or establishment not licensed by
the government to engage in the
business of dealing in or of supplying
the articles defined in the preceding
paragraph.
3. "Store", "establishment" or "entity"
shall be construed to include any
individual dealing in the buying and
selling used secondhand articles, as
defined in paragraph hereof.
4. "Buy and Sell" refer to the
transaction whereby one purchases
used secondhand articles for the
purpose of resale to third persons.
5. "Station Commander" shall refer to
the
Station
Commander
of
the
Integrated National Police within the
territorial limits of the town or city
district where the store, establishment
or entity dealing in the buying and

selling of used secondhand articles is

located.
II. Duty to Procure Clearance or Permit
1. No person shall sell or offer to sell to
the public any used secondhand article
as defined herein without first securing
a clearance or permit for the purpose
from the proper Station Commander of
the Integrated National Police.
2. If the person seeking the clearance
or permit is a partnership, firm,
corporation, or association or group of
individuals, the clearance or permit
shall be obtained by or in the name of
the president, manager or other
responsible officer-in-charge thereof.
3. If a store, firm, corporation,
partnership,
association
or
other
establishment or entity has a branch or
subsidiary and the used secondhand
article is acquired by such branch or
subsidiary for sale to the public, the
said branch or subsidiary shall secure
the required clearance or permit.
4. Any goods, article, item, or object or
anything of value acquired from any
source for which no receipt or
equivalent document evidencing the
legality of its acquisition could be
presented by the present possessor or
holder thereof, or the covering receipt,
or equivalent document, of which is
fake, falsified or irregularly obtained,
shall be presumed as having been
acquired from an unlicensed dealer or
supplier and the possessor or holder

thereof must secure the required

clearance or permit before the same
can be sold or offered for sale to the
public.
III. Procedure for Procurement
Clearances or Permits

of

1. The Station Commanders concerned

shall require the owner of a store or the
president, manager or responsible
officer-in-charge
of
a
firm,
establishment or other entity located
within their respective jurisdictions and
in possession of or having in stock used
secondhand articles as defined herein,
to submit an initial affidavit within thirty
(30) days from receipt of notice for the
purpose
thereof
and
subsequent
affidavits once every fifteen (15) days
within five (5) days after the period
covered, which shall contain:
(a) A complete inventory of such
articles acquired daily from whatever
source and the names and addresses of
the persons from whom such articles
were acquired.
(b) A full list of articles to be sold or
offered for sale as well as the place
where the date when the sale or offer
for sale shall commence.
(c) The place where the articles are
presently deposited or kept in stock.
The Station Commander may, at his
discretion when the circumstances of
each case warrant, require that the
affidavit submitted be accompanied by

other documents showing proof of

legitimacy of the acquisition of the
articles.
2. A party required to secure a
clearance or permit under these rules
and regulations shall file an application
therefor with the Station Commander
concerned. The application shall state:
(a) The name, address and other
pertinent circumstances of the persons,
in case of an individual or, in the case
of a firm, corporation, association,
partnership or other entity, the name,
address
and
other
pertinent
circumstances
of
the
president,
manager or officer-in-charge.
(b) The article to be sold or offered for
sale to the public and the name and
address of the unlicensed dealer or
supplier from whom such article was
acquired.
In support of the application, there shall
be attached to it the corresponding
receipt or other equivalent document to
show proof of the legitimacy of
acquisition of the article.
3. The Station Commander shall
examine the documents attached to the
application and may require the
presentation
of
other
additional
documents, if necessary, to show
satisfactory proof of the legitimacy of
acquisition of the article, subject to the
following conditions:

(a) If the legitimacy of acquisition of

any article from an unlicensed source
cannot be satisfactorily established by
the documents presented, the Station
Commander shall, upon approval of the
INP Superintendent in the district and at
the expense of the party seeking the
clearance/permit, cause the publication
of a notice in a newspaper of general
circulation for two (2) successive days
enumerating
therein
the
articles
acquired from an unlicensed dealer or
supplier, the names and addresses of
the persons from whom they were
acquired and shall state that such
articles are to be sold or offered for sale
to the public at the address of the store,
establishment or other entity seeking
the clearance/permit. In places where
no
newspapers
are
in
general
circulation, the party seeking the
clearance or permit shall, instead, post
a notice daily for one week on the
bulletin board of the municipal building
of the town where the store, firm,
establishment or entity concerned is
located or, in the case of an individual,
where the articles in his possession are
to be sold or offered for sale.
(b) If after 15 days, upon expiration of
the period of publication or of the
notice referred to in the preceding
paragraph, no claim is made with
respect to any of the articles
enumerated in the notice, the Station
Commander shall issue the clearance or
permit sought.

(c) If, before expiration of the same

period for publication of the notice or its
posting, it shall appear that any of the
articles in question is stolen property,
the Station Commander shall hold the
article in restraint as evidence in any
appropriate case to be filed. Articles
held in restraint shall be kept and
disposed of as the circumstances of
each case permit, taking into account
all considerations of right and justice in
the case. In any case where any article
is held in restraint, it shall be the duty
of the Station Commander concerned to
advise/notify the Commission on Audit
of the case and comply with such
procedure as may be proper under
applicable existing laws, rules and
regulations.
4. The Station Commander concerned
shall, within seventy-two (72) hours
from receipt of the application, act
thereon
by
either
issuing
the
clearance/permit requested or denying
the same. Denial of an application shall
be in writing and shall state in brief the
reason/s therefor.
5. The application, clearance/permit or
the denial thereof, including such other
documents as may be pertinent in the
implementation of Section 6 of P.D. No.
1612 shall be in the forms prescribed in
Annexes "A", "B", "C", "D", and "E"
hereof, which are made integral parts of
these rules and regulations.

6. For the issuance of clearances/permit

required under Section 6 of P.D. No.
1612, no fee shall be charged.
IV. Appeals
Any party aggrieved by the action taken
by the Station Commander may elevate
the decision taken in the case to the
proper INP District Superintendent and,
if he is still dissatisfied therewith may
take the same on appeal to the INP
Director. The decision of the INP
Director may also be appealed to the
INP Director-General whose decision
may likewise be appealed to the
Minister of National Defense. The
decision of the Minister of National
Defense on the case shall be final. The
appeal against the decision taken by a
Commander lower than the INP
Director-General should be filed to the
next higher Commander within ten (10)
days from receipt of notice of the
decision. The decision of the INP
Director-General should be appealed
within fifteen (15) days from receipt of
notice of the decision.
V. Penalties
1. Any person who fails to secure the
clearance or permit required by Section
6 of P.D. 1612 or who violates any of
the provisions of these rules and
regulations shall upon conviction be
punished as a fence.
2. The INP Director-General shall
recommend to the proper authority the
cancellation of the business license of

the
erring
individual,
store,
establishment or the entity concerned.
3. Articles obtained from unlicensed
sources for sale or offered for sale
without prior compliance with the
provisions of Section 6 of P.D. No. 1612
and with these rules and regulations
shall be held in restraint until
satisfactory evidence or legitimacy of
acquisition has been established.
4. Articles for which no satisfactory
evidence of legitimacy of acquisition is
established and which are found to be
stolen property shall likewise be held
under restraint and shall, furthermore,
be subject to confiscation as evidence
in the appropriate case to be filed. If,
upon termination of the case, the same
is not claimed by their legitimate
owners, the article/s shall be forfeited in
favor of the government and made
subject
to
disposition
as
the
circumstances warrant in accordance
with applicable existing laws, rules and
regulations. The Commission on Audit
shall, in all cases, be notified.
5. Any personnel of the Integrated
National Police found violating the
provisions of Section 6 of P.D. No. 1612
or any of its implementing rules and
regulations or who, in any manner
whatsoever, connives with or through
his negligence or inaction makes
possible the commission of such
violations by any party required to
comply
with
the
law
and
its
implementing rules and regulations,

shall be prosecuted criminally without

prejudice
to
the
imposition
of
administrative penalties.
VI. Visitorial Power
It shall be the duty of the owner of the
store or of the president, manager or
responsible officer-in-charge of any
firm, establishment or other entity or of
an individual having in his premises
articles to be sold or offered for sale to
the public to allow the Station
Commander
or
his
authorized
representative to exercise visitorial
powers. For this purpose, however, the
power to conduct visitations shall be
exercise only during office or business
hours and upon authority in writing
from and by the INP Superintendent in
the district and for the sole purpose of
determining whether articles are kept in
possession or stock contrary to the
intents of Section 6 of P.D. No. 1612 and
of these rules and regulations.
VII. Other Duties Imposed Upon Station
Commanders
and
INP
District
Superintendent and Directors Following
Action on Applications for Clearances or
Permits
1. At the end of each month, it shall be
the duty of the Station Commander
concerned to:
(a) Make and maintain a file in his office
of all clearances/permit issued by him.
(b) Submit a full report to the INP
District Superintendent on the number

of applications for clearances or permits

processed by his office, indicating
therein
the
number
of
clearances/permits issued and the
number of applications denied. The
report shall state the reasons for denial
of an application and the corresponding
follow-up actions taken and shall be
accompanied by an inventory of the
articles to be sold or offered for sale in
his jurisdiction.
2. The INP District Superintendent shall,
on the basis of the reports submitted by
the Station Commander, in turn submit
quarterly reports to the appropriate INP
Director containing a consolidation of
the information stated in the reports of
Station Commanders in his jurisdiction.
3.
Reports
from
INP
District
Superintendent shall serve as basis for
a consolidated report to be submitted
semi-annually by INP Directors to the
Director-General, Integrated National
Police.
4. In all cases, reports emanating from
the different levels of the Integrated
National Police shall be accompanied
with full and accurate inventories of the
articles
acquired
from
unlicensed
dealers or suppliers and proposed to be
sold or offered for sale in the
jurisdictions covered by the report.
These
implementing
rules
and
regulations, having been published in a
newspaper of national circulation, shall
take effect on June 15, 1979.

FOR THE CHIEF OF CONSTABULARY

DIRECTOR-GENERAL, INP:

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE
August 8, 1974

No.

532

ANTI-PIRACY AND ANTI-HIGHWAY

ROBBERY LAW OF 1974
WHEREAS,
reports
from
lawenforcement agencies reveal that
lawless elements are still committing
acts of depredations upon the persons
and
properties
of
innocent
and
defenseless inhabitants who travel from
one
place
to
another,
thereby
distributing the peace, order and
tranquility of the nation and stunting
the economic and social progress of the
people;
WHEREAS, such acts of depredations
constitute either piracy or highway
robbery/brigandage which are among
the highest forms of lawlessness
condemned by the penal statutes of all
countries; and,
WHEREAS, it is imperative that said
lawless elements be discouraged from
perpetrating such acts of depredations
by imposing heavy penalty on the
offenders, with the end in view of
eliminating
all
obstacles
to
the
economic, social, educational and
community progress of the people;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E.

MARCOS, President of the Philippines,
by virtue of the powers vested in me by
the Constitution and pursuant to
proclamation
No.
1081,
dated
September 21, 1972 and No. 1104,
dated January 17, 1973 and General
Order No. 1, dated September 22, 1972,
do hereby order and decree as part of
the law of the land the following:
Section 1. Title. This Decree shall be
known as the Anti-Piracy and AntiHighway Robbery Law of 1974.
Section 2. Definition of Terms. The
following terms shall mean and be
understood, as follows:
a. Philippine Waters. It shall refer to all
bodies of water, such as but not limited
to, seas, gulfs, bays around, between
and connecting each of the Islands of
the Philippine Archipelago, irrespective
of its depth, breadth, length or
dimension, and all other waters
belonging to the Philippines by historic
or legal title, including territorial sea,
the sea-bed, the insular shelves, and
other submarine areas over which the
Philippines
has
sovereignty
or
jurisdiction.
b. Vessel. Any vessel or watercraft used
for transport of passengers and cargo
from one place to another through
Philippine Waters. It shall include all
kinds and types of vessels or boats
used in fishing.

c. Philippine Highway. It shall refer to

any road, street, passage, highway and
bridges or other parts thereof, or
railway or railroad within the Philippines
used by persons, or vehicles, or
locomotives or trains for the movement
or
circulation
of
persons
or
transportation of goods, articles, or
property or both.
d. Piracy. Any attack upon or seizure of
any vessel, or the taking away of the
whole or part thereof or its cargo,
equipment, or the personal belongings
of its complement or passengers,
irrespective of the value thereof, by
means
of
violence
against
or
intimidation of persons or force upon
things, committed by any person,
including a passenger or member of the
complement of said vessel, in Philippine
waters, shall be considered as piracy.
The offenders shall be considered as
pirates and punished as hereinafter
provided.
e. Highway Robbery/Brigandage. The
seizure of any person for ransom,
extortion or other unlawful purposes, or
the taking away of the property of
another by means of violence against or
intimidation of person or force upon
things of other unlawful means,
committed by any person on any
Philippine Highway.

Section 3. Penalties. Any person who

commits
piracy
or
highway
robbery/brigandage as herein defined,
shall, upon conviction by competents
court be punished by:
a. Piracy. The penalty of reclusion
temporal in its medium and maximum
periods shall be imposed. If physical
injuries or other crimes are committed
as a result or on the occasion thereof,
the penalty of reclusion perpetua shall
be imposed. If rape, murder or homicide
is committed as a result or on the
occasion of piracy, or when the
offenders
abandoned
the
victims
without means of saving themselves, or
when the seizure is accomplished by
firing upon or boarding a vessel, the
mandatory penalty of death shall be
imposed.
b. Highway Robbery/Brigandage. The
penalty of reclusion temporal in its
minimum period shall be imposed. If
physical injuries or other crimes are
committed during or on the occasion of
the
commission
of
robbery
or
brigandage, the penalty of reclusion
temporal in its medium and maximum
periods shall be imposed. If kidnapping
for ransom or extortion, or murder or
homicide, or rape is committed as a
result or on the occasion thereof, the
penalty of death shall be imposed.
Section 4. Aiding pirates or highway
robbers/brigands or abetting piracy or
highway
robbery/brigandage. Any
person who knowingly and in any

manner aids or protects pirates or

highway robbers/brigands, such as
giving them information about the
movement of police or other peace
officers of the government, or acquires
or receives property taken by such
pirates or brigands or in any manner
derives any benefit therefrom; or any
person who directly or indirectly abets
the commission of piracy or highway
robbery or brigandage, shall be
considered as an accomplice of the
principal offenders and be punished in
accordance with the Rules prescribed
by the Revised Penal Code.
It shall be presumed that any person
who does any of the acts provided in
this Section has performed knowingly,
unless the contrary is proven.
Section 5. Repealing Clause. Pertinent
portions of Act No. 3815, otherwise
known as the Revised Penal Code; and
all laws, decrees, or orders or
instructions, or parts thereof, insofar as
they are inconsistent with this Decree
are hereby repealed or modified
accordingly.
Section 6. Effectivity. This Decree shall
take effect upon approval.
Done in the City of Manila, this 8th day
of August, in the year of Our Lord,
nineteen hundred and seventy-four.

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE No. 1829

PENALIZING
OBSTRUCTION
OF
APPREHENSION AND PROSECUTION
OF CRIMINAL OFFENDERS
WHEREAS, crime and violence continue
to proliferate despite the sustained
vigorous efforts of the government to
effectively contain them;
WHEREAS,
to
discourage
public
indifference or apathy towards the
apprehension
and
prosecution
of
criminal offenders, it is necessary to
penalize acts which obstruct or
frustrate or tend to obstruct or frustrate
the
successful
apprehension
and
prosecution of criminal offenders;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND, E.
MARCOS, President of the Philippines,
by virtue of the powers vested in me by
law do hereby decree and order the
following:
Section 1. The penalty of prision
correccional in its maximum period, or
a fine ranging from 1,000 to 6,000
pesos, or both, shall be imposed upon
any person who knowingly or willfully
obstructs, impedes, frustrates or delays
the apprehension of suspects and the
investigation
and
prosecution
of
criminal cases by committing any of the
following acts:
(a) preventing witnesses from testifying
in any criminal proceeding or from
reporting the commission of any
offense or the identity of any offender/s
by means of bribery, misrepresentation,
deceit, intimidation, force or threats;

(b) altering, destroying, suppressing or

concealing
any
paper,
record,
document, or object, with intent to
impair its verity, authenticity, legibility,
availability, or admissibility as evidence
in any investigation of or official
proceedings in, criminal cases, or to be
used in the investigation of, or official
proceedings in, criminal cases;
(c)
harboring
or
concealing,
or
facilitating the escape of, any person he
knows, or has reasonable ground to
believe or suspect, has committed any
offense under existing penal laws in
order to prevent his arrest prosecution
and conviction;
(d) publicly using a fictitious name for
the purpose of concealing a crime,
evading prosecution or the execution of
a judgment, or concealing his true
name and other personal circumstances
for the same purpose or purposes;
(e) delaying the prosecution of criminal
cases by obstructing the service of
process or court orders or disturbing
proceedings in the fiscal's offices, in
Tanodbayan, or in the courts;
(f) making, presenting or using any
record, document, paper or object with
knowledge of its falsity and with intent
to affect the course or outcome of the
investigation of, or official proceedings
in, criminal cases;
(g) soliciting, accepting, or agreeing to
accept any benefit in consideration of
abstaining
from,
discounting,
or

impeding the prosecution of a criminal

offender;
(h) threatening directly or indirectly
another with the infliction of any wrong
upon his person, honor or property or
that of any immediate member or
members of his family in order to
prevent such person from appearing in
the
investigation
of,
or
official
proceedings in, criminal cases, or
imposing a condition, whether lawful or
unlawful, in order to prevent a person
from appearing in the investigation of
or in official proceedings in, criminal
cases;
(i) giving of false or fabricated
information to mislead or prevent the
law
enforcement
agencies
from
apprehending the offender or from
protecting the life or property of the
victim; or fabricating information from
the data gathered in confidence by
investigating authorities for purposes of
background information and not for
publication
and
publishing
or
disseminating the same to mislead the
investigator or to the court.
If any of the acts mentioned herein is
penalized by any other law with a
higher penalty, the higher penalty shall
be imposed.
Section 2. If any of the foregoing acts
is committed by a public official or
employee, he shall in addition to the
penalties provided thereunder, suffer

perpetual disqualification from holding

public office.
Section 3. This Decree shall take effect
immediately.

Done in the City of Manila, this 16th day

of January, in the year of Our Lord,
nineteen hundred and eighty-one.