Raguindin Alma Bassig, 47, was sentenced on July 17 to three years and two months in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of theft by a servant. Three similar charges were also taken into consideration during sentencing, according to Mothership.
The court heard that Bassig had worked for the family since 2016 and had unrestricted access to every room in their home. She discovered a safe kept inside an unlocked wardrobe in her employer’s bedroom and later found its key hidden in a coat pocket.
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The State Courts of Singapore. Photo from Google Maps |
Between January and December 2022, she stole cash in euros, pounds and yen, along with jewellery worth S$77,851, including pieces from Van Cleef & Arpels, gold, jade and silver items.
She took the stolen valuables back to the Philippines during annual leave, where she converted the cash into pesos and sold or pawned the jewellery. She again took the stolen items to the Philippines, where she used the proceeds to expand her property holdings and purchase more vehicles.
Bassig struck again in June 2024, stealing another S$84,469 in cash, gold jewellery, diamonds and jade, including a princess-cut diamond jewellery set valued at S$18,000. She again brought the stolen items to the Philippines and used the proceeds to acquire more property, vehicles and farmland.
The thefts remained undetected until November 2025, when the employer noticed money missing from the safe but assumed it had been misplaced. After installing a motion-sensor camera in her bedroom in May 2026, she recorded Bassig opening the safe and removing valuables, prompting her to file a police report. Bassig was arrested the following day, Channel NewsAsia reported.
None of the stolen property has been recovered and no restitution has been made.
During sentencing, District Judge Koo Zhi Xuan described the amount stolen as “staggering” and said Bassig had gravely abused her employer’s trust after nearly a decade of service. He added that it was “highly uncertain” whether the stolen assets would ever be recovered.
Addressing the court, the employer said she felt deeply betrayed by someone she had trusted for almost 10 years.
“I am disappointed with her behaviour,” she said. “When I saw her opening my safe, my heart was broken. I cannot believe she was doing this to me.”
She added that she had paid for Bassig to return to the Philippines every year to visit her young children, despite their employment agreement requiring leave only once every two years.
The employer rejected any suggestion that the thefts were driven by financial hardship, saying the money had been spent on luxury purchases rather than supporting Bassig’s family. She also said some of the stolen jewellery had immense sentimental value, including heirlooms inherited from her mother-in-law.
When invited to respond, Bassig accepted full responsibility and asked that her family not be implicated. She also appealed for leniency so she could return home to care for her elderly mother.
The prosecution said it would consider seeking a confiscation order to help recover the stolen assets, though the judge noted that the court could not order compensation if the offender had no means to pay. He added that the victim remained free to pursue civil action.