By Daisy CL Mandap
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| The theft happened inside the employer's flat in The Belcher's in Pokfulam |
A Filipina domestic helper was ordered jailed for four
months at
Rosalia C. Jacinto, 53, said through her lawyer that she stole because her employer declined her request for long service pay after her nephew met a traffic accident last year and she needed to send money home to pay for his hospitalization. Her nephew subsequently died.
Jacinto’s employer, Manisha Kamad, instead gave her $1,000
but the helper said it was not enough to cover his nephew’s medical expenses.
At the time, Jacinto was being paid $5,750 a month and she sent $4,000 of this
to her family back in the
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| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
According to the charge she admitted, Jacinto stole 23 pieces of gold jewelry from an unlocked suitcase inside the employer’s bedroom in her house on 33/F, Tower 5, The Belcher’s in Pokfulam, between an unknown day in November last year and Sept. 15 this year.
The stolen jewelry consisted of six gold necklaces, 13 gold bangles, three gold earrings and one gold bracelet.
Sometime this month, the employer checked her hiding place and discovered that several pieces of jewelry had gone missing. Confronted about this, Jacinto admitted stealing the missing items and then showed three pawn tickets for them.
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| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
Police who investigated the pawnshop on
Prosecution said in court that the employer wanted to be compensated in the amount she spent redeeming the stolen jewelry.
To this, the defense lawyer said Jacinto had no money on hand, but offered to offset the compensation demanded against what she was owed for long service pay.
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| MAY CHANCE KA PANG MANALO! |
But he immediately agreed when Magistrate Yim said she didn’t think Jacinto was entitled to the gratuity because of what she had done.
According to the Labour Ordinance, a worker should be paid for long service if he/she has been in continuous employment for not less than 5 years prior to the termination of service by reason of: (i) dismissal for reasons other than redundancy or for cause (summary dismissal); or (ii) not renewing an employment contract; (iii) death or (iv) resignation on ground of ill health; or (v) resignation at the age of 65 or above on ground of old age.
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In sentencing, the magistrate said the crime involved was serious because it involved a breach of trust, and a number of valuable jewelry worth more than $90,000 had been stolen.
She also pointed out that to recover her lost property the employer had to spend more than $50,000 – an amount that the helper was in no position to repay to compensate for what she had done.
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| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
The magistrate said she was using six months’ imprisonment as a starting point in sentencing, but would take off a third because of the defendant’s guilty plea, leaving four months in jail as penalty.
She also said she was not making any order for compensation, but this should not stop the employer from filing a civil claim against the helper if she so wishes.
