DUBAI // The Philippine government will not disclose the results of an investigation into the burglary of its Dubai consulate in September. "It is an internal matter," said Crescente Relacion, the executive director of the migrant worker office in the Department of Foreign Affairs. In September, the department sent Mr Relacion to Dubai to investigate the burglary at the consulate, in which about Dh100,000 (US$27,223) in cash and cheques was taken from the office of its finance officer. The officer's passport also was stolen.
It is believed the burglary occurred on Sept 5, a Friday, when consulate staff were off. The crime was discovered by the staff at 6.30am the next day. The finance officer and one of the consulate's drivers were questioned by police after the burglary, in which the key to the vault and a piece of paper with the safe's combination had been taken from the finance officer's table. The driver was later held under police custody for not repaying a loan and for overstaying in the country for more than 1,600 days after absconding from his employer, a consulate source said.
Mr Relacion said he made recommendations in the case to Alberto Romulo, the foreign affairs secretary, but would not say what they were. A spokesperson for the Dubai Criminal Investigation Department said detectives were investigating the incident. rruiz@thenational.ae
