A Singaporean court has ordered a Filipino domestic worker to serve one year in prison for stealing approximately S$32,000 (USD 23600 or PhP1.19 million) from her employer over a five-year period in order to build her home in the Philippines.
On Friday, August 6, Delos Reyes Anabelle Llasos, 47, was sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to three counts of criminal breach of trust.
Singapore Housemaid Sent to Jail for Stealing Over S$32,000 to Build House in the Philippines
In 2010, Llasos started working for a 52-year-old man and his wife. The couple had given her an ATM card with a personal identification number (PIN) so she could assist them in making purchases and cash withdrawals, the Straits Times reported.
The stolen money totaling $32,080 was sent to the Philippines by the domestic worker. In May of last year, her employer discovered a missing sum of money from the bank account and notified the cops.
Llasos committed the crime out of desperation, according to Deputy Public Prosecutor Kang Jia Hui, but the money stolen was “quite significant.”
In court, Llasos expressed remorse over the foul deed against her employers.
“Your honour, I promise I won’t do this again. I am pleading for leniency and I wish to go back home as soon as possible,” she said.
She has paid her employer $3,000 in compensation. Her employer is not requesting any additional remuneration, according to the court.
For each count of criminal breach of trust, Llasos could have faced up to 15 years in prison and a fine.
Let this be a lesson for everyone to prioritize integrity and protect the trust given to us by our employers. While no one is asked to be perfect, it does one so much good to be an honest employee and as an individual, in general.
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