ANTIPOLO City, August 22, 2011?A Filipina working in Saudi who was accused of stealing her employer’s diamond wedding ring is soon to be home-bound.
John Leonard Monterona of Migrante-Middle East, in his email, that Rosalinda (not her real name), 29, and a native of Pililla, Rizal will be repatriated any time soon, as the Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Dammam Province had acted swiftly to her case.
Rosalinda was accused of stealing a diamond ring worth SAR375,000 (P4.257 million) but the Filipino worker vehemently denied that she did such thing.
“She has managed to call me after her boss has accused her of stealing the ring. Based on her statements, I can assess that she’s telling the truth,” he said.
After receiving the phone call, the migrant leader had alerted his colleagues to gather information about the veracity of Rosalinda’s reports.
“We did some investigation. We called up the welfare official handling her case and even spoke with some people who have knowledge about Rosalinda and of the incident, and we have confirmed that she’s truly innocent of the crime being accused against her,” Monterona said.
Rosalinda, is now temporarily seeking refuge in the Saudi Social Welfare Agency (SSWA) branch in Dammam, after she was released from the Dammam Central jail, around third week of July.
Last August 17, Monterona said, he has received a text message from Rosalinda that her case was already settled and she will be flying back to the Philippines, before the month ends.
“I immediately called her as I am so glad to read her SMS and eager to talk with her over the phone about the good news. She confirmed to me that the SSWA helped mediate with her employer,” Monterona said.
Citing Rosalinda’s short messages, Monterona said that her employer agreed to withdraw the case, after SWWA officials promised that it will raise and pay the amount for the “lost” wedding ring.
“She’s very lucky! Actually, me and her family back in the Philippines, have already lost hope since there’s already a formal complaint filed before the Saudi Court,” he said, adding that most of the Pinoys or Pinays facing legal cases in Saudi fail to get out of jail immediately, and worse, some of them are even sentenced to life imprisonment or even death, even if they were innocent of the crime they are being accused with. (Noel Sales Barcelona)
