Misuse of P5,000 Costs School Principal in Catanduanes 11 Years in Jail
CATANDUANES – A public school principal in Virac has been sentenced to 11 years in prison for allegedly falsifying documents and misusing P5,000 in government funds.
Court records show that Anchelita Sicio, the principal of Taytay Elementary School, falsified a sales invoice to make it appear that the school purchased 28 bags of cement worth P7,000. However, only eight bags, amounting to P2,000, were actually bought. The court found that she failed to account for the missing P5,000, which was part of the financial aid provided by the provincial government.
On February 12, the Sandiganbayan upheld the ruling of the Virac Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 42, which found Sicio guilty of malversation and falsification under the Revised Penal Code (RPC).
For malversation, the Sandiganbayan’s Seventh Division confirmed her sentence of four months and one day to three years, six months, and 21 days in prison. She was also permanently disqualified from holding any public office and ordered to pay a P5,000 fine. Additionally, she was required to pay another P5,000 in civil liability, equivalent to the amount she misappropriated.
Regarding the falsification charge, the anti-graft court revised the RTC’s initial ruling. The RTC had originally found her guilty of falsification committed by a private individual. However, the Sandiganbayan ruled that since she was a public official at the time, she should have been convicted under a stricter provision of the law, which carries a heavier penalty.
As a result, her sentence for falsification was increased from four months and one day to three years, six months, and 21 days, to a new term of six months and one day to eight years and one day in prison. She was also ordered to pay an additional P3,000 fine.
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