Maid from hell

Nothing could prepare 39-year-old Irenia Mahinay for what she was about to discover on the evening of Aug. 29. Already exhausted after overseeing the operations of her family’s beer and soft drink business all day, all the mother of two wanted that fateful night was to lie down and retire early. But her adrenaline shot up when she saw her cabinet pried open and the P140,000 safely kept inside is gone.

"The keys were there, and the money was already gone," said Irenia, a resident of Magsaysay Village, Tondo, Manila. "I was already hysterical when I called on my two kids and our househelpers to ask what happened. One of my kids told me that she accidentally left the keys at the cabinet’s lock when she took something from inside, but she didn’t notice who went in our room after."

It was not her nature to distrust househelpers because she treated them like family. Irenia had no choice but to question them pointblank about the matter. The revelation of their houseboy came as a shock.

"Si Arlene po Ate ang kumuha ng pera. Tinanong ko nga siya kung bakit niya iyon nagawa, at ang sabi niya may sakit daw kasi ang anak niya (It was Arlene who took your money, Ate. I asked her why she did it, and she said because her child was sick)," confessed the boy helper.

It was then that the observations Irenia had of the 30-year-old maid returned to her. She thought she could trust the Tanjay, Negros Oriental native because after all, she went back to work for her after she sincerely asked for permission to go back to Mandaue City to settle some problems. She kept on thinking what went wrong after Arlene, or Len-Len, came back. For the two months that Len-Len was with her, Irenia never doubted her despite of some shortcomings the maid had shown.

"There were times that it seemed difficult to ask her to do the house chores, but I just dismissed it. I also noticed that Len-Len would always go back to her room after doing her chores. She would not talk to us, or even engage in casual chat with any of the kids. I thought she was just like that," Irenia related.

Irenia hurriedly reported the matter to the barangay. There, she related that Len-Len might be going back to some of her relatives living in Tulay, Barangay Guizo in Mandaue City, Cebu. It was a longshot, nevertheless, the officer on duty at the barangay hall was optimistic the maid could still be located. The barangay official immediately relayed the matter to the police detachment in their area, who in turn called 117 for help.

"117-NCR took care of coordinating with Patrol 117-Cebu to report the theft. 117-Cebu then alerted the Mandaue City police station regarding the matter. I never lost faith that my money could still be returned to me, with all the help and support that these people were showing," stated Irenia.

She also asked the help of her nephew, Penelito Mahinay, who was then residing in Dumaguete City. She figured that coordination with the Mandaue City police would be easier with Penelito nearby. Penelito did not let her aunt down; he took it upon himself to closely coordinate with the Cebu police for updates on the case.

The Mandaue City police tasked its intelligence and investigation Section to handle the matter. Operatives of the said section immediately coordinated with tanod Brigade of Barangay Guizo to jointly conduct a manhunt. Their efforts finally gained positive result when at about 3:30 in the afternoon of Sept. 9, Len-Len was spotted in one of the shanties in Tulay, Mandaue City.

"They (Mandaue City police) told my nephew that a barangay tanod by the name of Alfredo Despi of Barangay Centro sighted Len-Len at the said location. Mr. Despi quickly apprehended her, and called the Mandaue City police for proper disposition. I was extremely relieved when my nephew delivered to me the good news," Irenia said.

Penelito went to the Mandaue City police station to positively identify the suspect. During investigation, Len-Len confessed that she took the P140,000 from her employer’s closet in the late afternoon of Aug. 29 and boarded a Superferry vessel going to Iloilo City. She further narrated that after staying in the said province for a day, she again boarded a Trans-Asia vessel for Cebu City, then proceeded to her hometown in Tanjay, Negros Oriental, where she stayed until the morning of Sept. 9. Also on that day, she said, she went back to Cebu City to stay with some relatives in Tulay.

Len-Len apologized that only P80,000 was left with the money she stole. Some neighbors questioned by the police disclosed that when Len-Len arrived in their area, she allegedly threw a party. "Nagpainom, nagpa-lechon (She invited people for a drinking spree, and even bought roasted pig). She also used some of the money to buy a television set and DVD player for her family in Tanjay. The Mandaue police recovered the articles from her hometown," Irenia stated.

On Sept. 10, Len-Len was ferried back to Manila and the next day, was immediately detained at the Western Police District in Manila. She now faces qualified theft charges.

Although only P80,000 was recovered from her money, Irenia is still thankful that justice was properly served. "I could have never recovered my money at all, if not for the swift response of the people behind 117, the barangay officials in our area and the Mandaue City police," Irenia said.

Indeed, things could have gone worse for Irenia Mahinay, if not for the nationwide efficiency of 117 and the people that make it work.