It turns out one netizen, who posted that he got PHP12 billion (US$240 million) in his account due to a glitch, really didn’t get PHP 12 billion. Most people had funds legitimately deducted from their accounts due to the massive error last month, but the funds were returned within the week.
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) got involved and found out that the viral post of Daniel Salasalan turned out to be fake.
The NBI said the image was obviously doctored because there was no peso sign on the screen in the image posted by Salasalan.
Salasalan did try to ask forgiveness from the bank through a letter. He admitted that his post was ‘fake news’ and only posted it for fun. He didn’t think that his post would become a big issue and is ready to take back the story of the alleged PHP12 billion deposit.
But for BPI, the apology is too late. They’re pushing through with the case and filing charges of “cyber libel and falsification by private individuals with the use of falsified documents.”
The NBI is hoping this serves as a lesson to those spreading ‘fake news’ on social media, even just for kicks.
Salasalan wouldn’t issue a statement when asked by reporters about the charges because he hadn’t seen them yet. If convicted, Salasalan could face six to 12 years in jail.
With reports from ABS-CBN News
