The Chief of Land Transportation Office (LTO), Virginia Torres has received clearance on allegation that she had assisted the registration of a stolen or smuggled Mitsubishi Pajero while she was the head of the LTO in Tarlac in 2009.

The Pajero was bought by Josefino P. Razon from Masato Takaoka in 1997. The vehicle was registered at the LTO Roxas District Office with plate number RJP-111 and Motor Vehicle (MV) No. 0232-00000009279. The same MV was assigned to Razon’s motorcycle. It was concluded from the MV that the Mitsubishi Pajero was either a stolen vehicle or a smuggled vehicle.

In 1999, the Pajero was sold to Cristina Macasaet and the transfer of the vehicle was registered with LTO Tarlac City office. Macasaet sold the vehicle to spouses Arnel and Cheryl Lou Sicat, who sold it to Dimsy B. Yap in 2009.

Senior State Prosecutor of the Department of Justice, Peter Ong said that that Torres was not aware that the vehicle was stolen. The case dates back to either September 1997 or June 1999 when Virginia Torres was neither the district head of the LTO Roxas District Office nor of the LTO Tarlac District Office.