A FORMER market collector in Talisay City is facing trial for reportedly falsifying 620 official receipts of stall rentals and pocketing over P2.3 million in government money.
The Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas found probable cause to indict Libertad Juban on charges of malversation of public funds through falsification of public documents. Prosecutors recommended a bail of P40,000.
Gaudioso Melendez, acting director of the prosecution bureau of the Ombudsman Visayas, gave credence to the report of the Commission on Audit (COA) which examined the cash and accounts of Juban.
“There is a firm indication that the respondent falsified official receipts,” the anti-graft official said.
Last May 2014, Juban was ordered dismissed from service with the accessory penalties of cancellation of eligibility, forfeiture of retirement benefits and perpetual disqualification from government service.
However, she resigned in 2009 so the anti-graft office converted the sanction into a fine equivalent to her salary for one year.
Based on the investigation conducted by the anti-graft office, Juban committed the dishonest act several times.
In 2009, Melba Macapobre, audit team leader of Talisay City, requested the Commission on Audit (COA) to conduct a fraud audit on the transactions in the public market.
In an inquiry conducted by state auditors, they found that several official receipts under the accountability of Juban were falsified. The inquiry covered the collections of stall rentals in 2007, 2008, and the first quarter of 2009.