The plea of the former chief of the Register of Deeds in the province of Bukidnon to be absolved of graft charges was denied anew by the Sandiganbayan for lack of merit.

 According to the anti-graft court, it found no cogent grounds to reverse its decision dated 6 June 2023, affirming the ruling of the Bukidnon Regional Trial Court.

The Bukidnon RTC found Manuel Felicia guilty of violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (RA 3019) and sentenced him to up to 10 years in prison.

 The anti-graft court's previous ruling showed that Felicia was indicted by the Ombudsman in 2008 following a series of complaints from the local Bureau of Internal Revenue regional director and private individuals over anomalies in the granting of transfer certificates of titles from deceased registered owners.

 Felicia was busted in 2020 in an entrapment operation following a complaint by Policarpio Catalan, who alleged that the ex-chief solicited cash in exchange for the swift approval and issuance of a certificate of land title.

  "As a grizzled veteran at the Office of the Register Deeds, and a lawyer at that, accused-appellant should know better," it said.