MANILA, Philippines (1st UPDATE) - Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Kim Henares said she found several discrepancies in the Statements of Assets, Liabilities and Net worth (SALNs) vis a vis the income tax returns (ITRs) of Chief Justice Renato Corona, which pushed her to launch a separate tax investigation.

During her re-direct examination on day 12 of the impeachment trial, Henares said nine properties were not included in Corona’s 2002 SALN.

These properties, as well as the La Vista and Marikina properties, were omitted in the 2003 SALN. She said Corona stated his net worth in his SALN to be P7 million, when it should have indicated a net worth of P14 million.

For 2004, Henares said that Corona should have disclosed a P21-million net worth, instead of P7 million.

For 2005, she also noticed the chief magistrate did not disclose the Fort Bonifacio property in his SALN.

For 2006, she said the net worth was under-declared at P8.3 million, when it should have been P31.224 million.

“For year 2007, the same thing. It should have a net worth of P24,000,735 whereas it only showed a net worth of 11 million,” she said.

For 2008, the net worth should be P25 million, instead of P12 million.

For 2009, the net worth was supposed to be P52 million because of The Bellagio property, instead of the disclosed P14.5 million.

“For 2010, that’s where the net worth went down but this is because of the La Vista sale of P18 million,” she said.

'Persecution of Corona'

Defense lawyer Serafin Cuevas moved to strike out the statements of Henares, noting it was not based on the allegations in the impeachment complaint.

He also questioned the timing of the investigation being done by the BIR, saying it was a form of “persecution.”

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said the defense can “just traverse on [the objections] when the time comes.”

He noted, however, that the BIR is already noting the “discrepancies” when the investigation is not yet completed. “You’ve not determined if there’s tax liability arising from that.”

To which, Henares answered: “We do a preliminary study to determine if there’s need for further investigation.”

Cuevas likewise questioned the competence of Henares to determine the truthfulness of the SALN.

“On the basis of your data, you came to conclusion that the buyer doesn’t have enough means to purchase the properties,” he asked Henares. The latter answered: “That’s why I said it warrants further investigation.”

'Just notes'

In a separate press conference, defense spokesperson Karen Jimeno said they are not worried about the amounts disclosed by Henares since these are just her “own notes.”

She said the amounts are based on “market values,” which is different from the acquisition cost. She said these amounts have yet to be verified.

“That was why [Senate President Judge Enrile] said the BIR has not yet assessed the deficiencies. These are not yet the product of a final investigation," she said.