A former high-ranking manager at JacintoColor Steel Inc. (JCSI) and her spouse have been charged with four counts of qualified theft before the Regional Trial Court in Quezon City, with no recommended bail for all counts after allegedly stealing millions of pesos in raw materials from the company.

The Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office believes it has enough evidence to move forward with the case against former JCSI vice president Sissie Elamparo Bongat and her husband, Christopher Foronda Bongat, adding that the alleged thefts happened between 2020 and 2022, during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Her position is high in the company and she took advantage of the situation during the pandemic to commit the said offense,” said Atty. Jun Torres, counsel of the owners of the company in an interview.

Torres said the theft was discovered by the owners of the company after the pandemic was lifted and conducted an audit showing some discrepancy, adding that they already filed the case and awaiting the issuance of an arrest warrants for the respondents.

Prosecutors believe Bongat abused her position and the difficulties of the Covid-19 lockdown. They accuse her of using company credit lines to buy raw materials worth P648,266,818.