Filipino maid jailed in Singapore for $400,000 theft

MANILA, Philippines — A Filipina maid was imprisoned Monday for stealing jewelry from her Filipino employer worth $400,000 to serve her first two-year sentence in Singapore.

In a report by The Straits Times, the Filipina maid was identified as 48-year-old Mary Jane Importante Escalona, who faces up to seven years in jail.

Escalona reportedly pawned the jewelry which include diamond rings, gold stone rings and earrings she took from her 60-year-old employer, Jose Isidro Navato Camacho, on the same day, to fund her gambling vice.

She gambled the money away in casinos at Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands.

Aside from the jewelry with value ranging from US$3,000 (S$4,064) to US$100,000 (S$135,460), Escalona also stole cash at Camacho's Rochester Drive unit between 2014 and October last year.

Camacho reported the missing money to the police on Oct. 18, 2015, naming Escalona as his suspect.

The report said Escalona faced 37 charges and pleaded guilty to 12 counts of theft. Due to this, she may possibly be jailed for up to seven years and fined on each charge. — Rosette Adel