Filipina who took out loan after being fired gets 3 months’ jail

By Daisy CL Mandap

 

The Filipina says she did not realize it was wrong to obtain a loan after being fired from work

A Filipina domestic helper could have gotten away with taking out a $20,000 loan from a financing company despite her being terminated, had her friend who split the money with her paid her share of the proceeds.

But because no monthly repayment was ever made for the loan with Prime Credit, Lanie B. del Mundo who was listed as borrower, was arrested as soon as she returned to Hong Kong on Feb. 1 this year.

This was according to Del Mundo’s lawyer who asked Eastern Court magistrate Lam Tsz Kwan to impose a lenient sentence on the Filipina, saying she has now lost her job, and “it’s very likely” that she will not be able to work in Hong Kong again because of her criminal record.

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Del Mundo, who is 36 and has two teenage children in the Philippines, pleaded guilty to fraud when she appeared in court, and said she “absolutely regretted” having committed the offence.

However, the defense lawyer said Del Mundo did not intend to deceive the financing company, she just didn’t know that she could not have taken out a loan if she was out of work.

According to the lawyer, a friend had asked Del Mundo to apply for a loan on her behalf as she was not yet qualified to do this herself, having been in Hong Kong for only a month.

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Del Mundo applied for a $20,000 loan – which was to have been split equally with her friend - two days after her employer had fired her on Aug. 20 last year, which meant she only had 14 days to remain in Hong Kong.

“She thought she could get a new employer soon,” said her lawyer. “She did not realize the consequences of her action.”

Del Mundo was not able to find a new employer immediately and had to go home. In the meantime, her unnamed friend who was in court today to show support, did not pay her share of the monthly repayment for the loan, leading to the discovery of the fraud.

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The defendant eventually managed to find a new employer, and had come here on Feb 1 this year to take up the job, but she was arrested on her arrival at the Hong Kong International Airport.

She was charged with fraud for having obtained a loan from PrimeCredit Limited on Aug 23, 2022 at its office in Euro Trade Centre in Central, “by falsely representing” that her employment contract was still valid.

In mitigation, her lawyer said Del Mundo had a clear record. She first came to Hong Kong in 2019 and had finished her first contract, but was terminated a year later.

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She had written a letter to the magistrate to ask for leniency, saying she now realizes she made a big mistake, and did not wish her children to follow her example.

However, as she was jobless she could not repay her outstanding loan with Prime, which amounted to already more than $21,500 with interest.

Her lawyer asked for a more lenient sentence, saying the case did not involve the use of forged document or any other fraudulent means as what happens in more serious cases.

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Magistrate Lam said the sentence should have been 4.5 months, but he was reducing it to three months because of the defendant’s guilty plea.

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2 Pinay na overstay, sangkot sa kasong droga

 

Iba-iba ang kinahinatnan ng tatlong akusado sa Eastern Court

Nagsanga ang mga landas ng dalawang Pilipinang nag overstay at isang Briton na naharap sa kasong droga sa Eastern Court matapos silang mahuli sa Wanchai noong Sept. 2-3, 2022.

Ang Briton, si Sam Burcher, 23 taong gulang at estudyante, ay pinagmulta ng $5,000. Bumalik sya sa korte gaya ng pangako  niya noong maglagak ng $50,000 kapalit ng pagpayag ng korte na ituloy muna niya ang kanyang pag-aaral sa UK.

Iginawad ni Magistrate Daniel Tang ang parusa kay Burcher noong Miyerkules (March 23) matapos siyang umamin sa sakdal na pagkakaroon (o possession) ng 2.56 na gramo ng marijuana nang arestuhin ng pulis sa harap ng Hong Kong Bldg. sa Wanchai.

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Inutos ni Tang na kaltasin ang multa sa piyansang $50,000 na mababawi ni Burcher dahil tapos na ang kaso niya.

Ang kaso naman ng dalawang Pilipinang naaresto kasama niya at inakusahang nagbebenta ng marijuana ay nagpapatuloy pa.

Pero si Teodora Quijano, 33 taong gulang at walang trabaho, ay pinayagang magpiyansa ng $5,000 matapos iurong ng taga-usig ang kasong drug trafficking  laban sa kanya. 

Ang tanging kasong hinaharap niya ngayon ay paglabag sa kondisyon ng kanyang paglagi sa Hong Kong, dahil siya ay nag-overstay.

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Nang mahuli siya sa 2^nd floor ng Hong Kong Bldg., nadiskubre na si Quijano ay tatlong buwan nang overstay. Naterminate siya bilang domestic helper noong May 15, 2022 at dapat ay nakaalis na siya pagkatapos ng 14 na araw, o noong May 29, 2022.

Itinakda ni Magistrate Tang sa May 3 ang susunod na pagdinig sa kaso niya.

Ang ikatlong akusado, si Maria Eldha Cabello, 33 taong gulang at walang trabaho, ay nahaharap sa mas mabigat na kaso dahil ang susunod na pagdinig sa kanya sa April 21 ay upang iakyat ito sa mas mataas na korte, ang District Court.

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Akusado siya sa dalawang kasong drug trafficking. Inakusahan siyang nagbebenta ng droga sa hagdanan sa 3^rd floor ng Hong Kong Bldg.  noong gabi ng Sept. 2, at sa Room 9 ng Ming Court Guest Hotel na nasa 2nd floor ng gusali makalipas ang ilang oras.

Maliban sa mga kasong droga, kinasuhan din siya ng paglabag sa kondisyon ng kanyang paglalagi sa Hong Kong, dahil nag-overstay siya ng halos isang buwan.

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Na-terminate siya noong July 29, 2022 at dapat ay nakauwi na noong Aug. 11, 2022 pero naglagi pa siya hanggang mahuli noong Sept. 2.

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CG says Consulate has aired concerns about alleged job hopping to HK govt

By Daisy CL Mandap

Migrants oppose legislating so-called 'job-hopping' by FDWs

Consul General Raly Tejada says the Consulate has relayed to the Hong Kong government its “deep concern” about allegations of job hopping among foreign domestic workers.

“Please note that the Consulate General has made strong representations with the Hong Kong government on the matter and will continue to do so through official channels,” said ConGen Tejada in an email to The SUN.

Most recently, he said the issue was brought up by his team during their regular Technical Working Group dialogue with officials from the Hong Kong Labour Department and the Department of Immigration.

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 “I have also expressed my deep concern over the policy’s negative impact on Filipino domestic workers with no less than Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun,” ConGen added.

“He (Sun) replied that Hong Kong will always respect the rights of our workers and that he will make sure that they remain protected. He added that Hong Kong does not take the issue lightly with every case treated individually and decided based on relevant and applicable law.”

CG Tejada (left) says he has raised the issue with Labour Secretary Chris Sun (PCG File Photo)

The country’s top diplomat said he wished to assure the Filipino community in Hong Kong of the Consulate’s “unwavering support and assistance” with regard to the job-hopping allegation, and called on everyone to continue working together to resist any move that would adversely affect them.

He made his remarks after the United Filipinos in Hong Kong issued a statement on Wednesday, questioning the Consulate’s “silence” on the issue.

Unifil said that as representative of the Filipino people in Hong Kong the Consulate should be the first to speak up and uphold the rights of Filipino migrant workers.

At the very least, said the group, ConGen Tejada should take the lead in explaining the issue to the community and then take up the cudgels for the Filipino workers whose rights are under attack.

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Unifil and other migrant organizations aligned with the Asian Migrants Coordinating Body staged a protest outside the Labour Department office in Sheung Wan on Monday, ahead of the tabling before the Legislative Council of a proposal to include “job hopping” in the list of prohibited acts of FDWs in the Code of Practice for Employment Agencies.

Unifil slammed Labour’s proposal as malicious and racist, as it targets only migrant domestic workers and not employers.

The group said the public consultation is being held on the wrong presumption that FDWs often are the ones who initiate the early termination of contracts, when in fact, employers are the ones more likely to do this.

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The employers’ “whim and capricious” termination of contracts leave the newly arrived workers jobless and indebted, said the group.

What the government, particularly the Immigration Department, should do is to apply the law fairly by requiring employers to cite the reason for termination, and also count the number of times they have terminated their domestic helpers, added Unifil.

Unifil’s chair, Dolores Balladares, said: “We want to tell the HK Department of Labour and the Immigration Department that if we are treated justly and humanely, our working conditions is good and our rights as migrant workers inside our employer’s household is uphold and protected…no migrant domestic workers will be forced to terminate a contract...”

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Employment agencies have also criticized the proposal, saying it violates the FDWs’ right to choose who to work for, as provided for in the Basic Law.

But employers who have been pushing Immigration to continue cracking the whip on FDWs who do not finish their two-year contracts say the proposal is fair as it prevents helpers from switching employers, and causing huge financial losses to the one who paid for them to come here.

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Pilipina nakaiwas-kulong sa inaming pagnanakaw

 

Ang tindahan na pinangyarihan ng nakawan

Isang Pilipina ang nakaligtas sa pagkakakulong ngayon sa Eastern Court nang isailalim siya sa bind-over order bilang parusa sa inamin niyang pagnanakaw ng mga pagkain at panlaba sa isang tindahan sa  Quarry Bay.

Hindi agad nakasagot si M.F. Peig, 41 taong gulang at isang domestic helper, nang tanungin siya ni Magistrate Daniel Tang kung payag ba siyang sumailalim sa bind-over at hindi siya makukulong kung mangangakong hindi magnanakaw muli.

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Nang tumango si Peig at nagsabing payag siya, ibinigay ni Magistrate Tang ang mga kondisyon -- na magbabayad sya ng $1,000 kung magkakasala ulit sa loob ng isang taon, maliban sa kaukulang parusa sa bagong kasalanan.

Kinasuhan si Peig ng pagnanakaw matapos siyang mahuli sa pagtangay nang hindi nagbabayad ng mga produktong mula sa Aeon Supermarket sa Kornhill Plaza sa Quarry Bay noong Oct. 4, 2022.

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Ayon sa pulis ito ang kanyang mga ninakaw: isang pakete ng steamed cheese cake, dalawang pakete ng milky steamed cake, isang bote ng soy milk, apat na pirasong chocolate candy at dalawang laundry capsule.

Ayon sa Theft Ordinance, ang pagnanakaw ay may parusa na hanggang 10 taong pagkabilanggo.

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Matatandaan na noong Dec. 5, sa West Kowloon Magistracy, napatawan ng anim na araw na pagkakulong si Genelyn Cusay dahil nag-shoplift sa isang tindahan ng Wellcome Supermarket sa Lantau noong Nov. 22.

Pero dahil nabisto rin na overstay na siya nang higit sa anim na taon, na paglabag sa section 41 ng Immigration Ordinance, pinarusahan din siya ng dalawang buwan sa kulungan,  na kasasabay niyang pinagdusahan.

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Sa araw ding iyon, pinagmulta naman ng $1,000 si Apryl Ruth Peningeo matapos umamin sa West Kowloon Court na nag-shoplift sa Wellcome Supermarket sa Mei Foo Sun Chuen sa Cheung Sha Wan, Kowloon, noong Nov. 25. Ang ninakaw niya: tatlong pakete ng gulay, isang pakete ng tinapay, at isang pakete ng salmon na nagkakahalaga ng kabuuang $138.

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2 linggong kulong sa nagnakaw ng Champagne at Coke

 

Ang eskinita kung saan nahuli ang tatlong kinasuhan

Isang Pilipina ang ikinulong nang dalawang linggo matapos siyang umamin kanina (March 21) na nagnakaw, kasama ang dalawa pa, ng dalawang bote ng Coca Cola at isang bote ng Champagne sa Tsim Sha Tsui.

Maliban dito, pinagbayad din si Bernadette Camarillo, 32 taong gulang, ng $180 bilang parte nya sa halaga ng ninakaw, na dapat ilagak sa korte sa loob ng pitong araw.

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Kinasuhan si Camarillo kasama ang lalaking si Walid Boulatef, 44 taong gulang na Tunisian, at ang babaeng si Enkhisetsegmaral, 35 taong gulang, pero ang dalawa ay hindi humarap sa Kowloon City Magistracy at hindi sinabi kung ano na ang lagay ng kanilang kaso.

Ang tatlo ay pawang walang trabaho at nagtataglay ng recognizance form bilang aplikante para mabigyan ng non-refoulement o pagbabawal na pauwiin sila nang sapilitan sa pinanggalingan nilang bansa.

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Nahuli ang tatlo noong March 3 sa eskinita na nasa likod ng 7 Pine Tree Road sa Tsim Sha Tsui na dala ang tatlong bote ng inumin. Lumabas sa imbestigasyon na galing ang mga inumin sa katabing Thai Restaurant.

Itinakda ni Acting Principal Magistrate Peony Wong ang parusa kay Camarillo sa tatlong linggong kulong, pero binawasan niya ito ng 1/3 dahil sa kanyang agarang pag-amin.

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Humingi ng kaluwagan sa pagpaparusa ang abogado ni Camarillo, na dumating sa Hong Kong noong 2018 at iniwan ang dalawang anak sa Pilipinas, dahil maliit lang ang halaga ng ninakaw na payag niyang bayaran ang 1/3 na parte niya.

Sinabi rin ng abogado na hindi lang siya ang may-gawa ng krimen at nasangkot lang siya.

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At dahil dalawang linggo na siyang nakapiit, hiningi rin ng abogado ang agarang pagpapalaya kay Camarillo.

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Filipino who threatened to burn down Consulate convicted on 3 charges

By Daisy CL Mandap

 

Bondoc was taken into custody ahead of his sentencing on April 3

Security was tight inside court no 4 at Eastern Magistracy on Monday as a Filipino resident who threatened to burn down the Consulate, assaulted one of its staff and intimidated a security personnel, was immediately put behind bars after being found guilty on three charges.

Ronald B. Bondoc, 42, a restaurant worker, will be sentenced on April 3, after background reports are submitted to court on orders of Magistrate Leona Chan Pui-man.

The magistrate held that the prosecution was able to prove beyond reasonable doubt all three cases of criminal intimidation, common assault and loitering causing concern that were brought against Bondoc.

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She also found that the three Consulate staff who were presented as prosecution witnesses were honest and credible.

In contrast, Bondoc who defended himself after rejecting the services of a counsel from the Duty Lawyer scheme, was found to have given excuses that were hard to believe.

In the first case of criminal intimidation, Bondoc called the Consulate hotline on January 22 last year, during which he repeatedly threatened to burn down the Consulate offices and hurt its staff, particularly “Arnel.”

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The call was recorded by the staff on duty Lhyndzie M. Orozco, who testified in court how Bondoc’s threat had so alarmed her that she reported it to her superior the very next day. 

In turn, the officer personally went to the police to file a complaint and hand over a copy of the audio recording of Bondoc’s call. This came after Bondoc visited the Consulate and assaulted one of the staff there  

In his defense, Bondoc said he made the call only because he was distressed and suicidal as the Consulate did not allow him to change his status to “single” in his passport even if he had already separated from his wife.

He also said it was not his intention to intimidate Orozco as he was only after Arnel. In fact, he said he repeatedly apologized to Orozco for getting her involved. He also questioned why it took the Consulate three days to complain to police.

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In rejecting his defence, Magistrate Chan said, “I do not believe that he had called merely to seek help from the Consulate,” noting that Bondoc repeatedly threatened  to burn down the Consulate offices and harm its staff, particularly “Arnel” during the phone call.

Among the threats he made were:

“If you want me to go there, Miss,  I will set the office on fire.”

“You will be a witness to what I am saying now.”

“Leave that place, the day will come when it will be burned down.”

“The Consulate will be burned one of these days”

“Will you be one of them if you don’t say this to Arnel?”

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Magistrate Chan said Bondoc’s words were calculated  to cause concern to anyone who might have heard them. She also said it was immaterial that the Consulate filed a complaint with the police three days after the incident.

In the second charge of common assault which happened two days after the phone call, the magistrate said she believed the victim, Edmound Cortes, when he told the court that Bondoc had held him by the neck when he stopped him entering a restricted area in the Consulate.

At that time, Bondoc held a golf club in one hand and his baby on the other. Video recordings of the incident showed him entering the public area and passing on his baby to a Filipina in the crowd, before attempting to move towards the assistance to nationals section.

Cortes said he pushed Bondoc away after he tried to strangle him as the defendant was still holding the golf club. Other male staff came to his rescue, and one of them was seen on video to have kicked Bondoc on the back.

The magistrate said the video recording of the incident confirmed Cortes’ story. She also said the kick on Bondoc’s back was made after that assault, so his claim that he was actually the victim in the incident could not be true.

Further, she noted that by passing on his baby to another person before making a move, Bondoc showed an intent “to do some action.”

For the third charge of loitering causing concern, the magistrate said a video recording of the incident on March 28, 2022 showed clearly that Bondoc had hung around the Consulate’s lift lobby for 15 minutes doing nothing except to go in circles.

Before this, he approached the CCTV and showed a metal angle bar he was carrying, which he then proceeded to put down on the table of the security officer just before the entrance to the Consulate, but made no move to enter.

Two Consulate staff were also seen to approach Bondoc but he did not engage  them in a conversation. After about two minutes, ambulancemen arrived, followed by police officers, and they took Bondoc away.

The magistrate said all these events belied Bondoc’s claim that he had gone there to ask for a copy of the CCTV of the Feb 24 incident. If this was true, he would have asked the security guard or the staff who approached him if he could enter.

Instead, he merely walked around with no discernible purpose, leading the magistrate to conclude that Bondoc’s real intention at that time was to cause concern to the guard and the other people in the area.

Ahead of the sentencing, the prosecution told the magistrate that the defendant had a clear record.

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