SC clerk dismissed for stealing P277,000 court collections

The Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday said a clerk in a Makati court has been dismissed after she allegedly took court collections amounting to P277,000 and replaced them with fake money.

In a statement, the SC said the court found the employee guilty of gross misconduct violating the Code of Conduct for Court Personnel, Serious Dishonesty, and Commission of a Crime involving Moral Turpitude based on the June 27 decision of the Court En Banc.

These are all serious charges under Section 14 of Rule 140 of the Rules of Court, according to the SC.

The dismissal was handed down after the Supreme Court conducted an investigation after one employee discovered fake bills in their cashier. 

According to the SC, the suspect appeared uneasy during the investigation. The suspect was also seen going to the storage room at the back of the OCC-MeTC even though they are ordered to stay in their work areas.

She was also seen coming out from the edge of a filing cabinet, which prompted the police to search the area.

The SC said “the police officers discovered the stolen money inside a black pouch” and “there were also fake bills found in the garbage bin in front of the table” of the suspect.

A litigant also confirmed that only the suspect was in the cashier area the whole time her coworker was away.

Aside from dismissal, the SC also ordered the forfeiture of the suspect’s benefits and privileges, except her accrued leave credits.

It also ordered her perpetual disqualification from re-employment in any government office, including government-owned or controlled corporations.

A criminal charge for qualified theft has been filed against the suspect.

“The High Court has consistently declared that thievery, no matter how petty, has no place in the Judiciary. Every employee of the Judiciary should be an example of integrity, uprightness, and honesty,” the SC said. —Joviland Rita/ VAL, GMA Integrated News