A Grade 6 pupil has accused a teacher of detaining her over accusations of theft at Kinabong 2 Elementary School in Brgy. Igmaya-an, Salvador Benedicto, Negros Occidental.
The 11-year-old student, identified as Maria (not her real name), along with her brother-in-law, filed a complaint against her Grade 3 adviser, Ranil Palabrica, at the Bombo Radyo Bacolod station.
According to Maria, on August 27, she was called by Palabrica at 3:00 PM and taken to the school’s sleeping quarters, where she was pressured to confess to stealing more than ₱900 from the teacher.
Maria, however, denied the accusation, stating that she was at home sleeping when the money allegedly went missing at around 12:00 AM.
She further revealed that another adviser, Jennel Ribatado, was also present and urged her to admit to the alleged theft.
Fatima claimed the two teachers threatened not to release her unless she confessed.
Other teachers, however, intervened, telling Palabrica and Ribatado to let the child go, as there was no concrete proof against her.
Fatima was reportedly held from 3:00 PM until 7:00 PM.
She said that four armed men were guarding outside the room where she was detained, adding that Palabrica threatened her, saying she would be killed if she revealed what happened.
It was also discovered that this was not the first time Fatima had been imprisoned by the teacher.
On August 27 of the previous year, she was allegedly detained from 3:00 PM and released at 5:00 AM the following day.