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Woman who stole $2K gets suspended sentence
A 53-year-old woman who stole $2,020 that was intended as payment for a permanent registration application has pleaded guilty to theft by deception and got a suspended sentence as part of a plea deal with the government.
Superior Court Associate Judge Kenneth L. Govendo sentenced Elizabeth Berganio on Tuesday to two years in prison, all suspended, and placed her on probation for five years.
Berganio was ordered to pay $2,020 in restitution to the victim, Yingshun Sakisat, $5,000 in fine that shall be reduced to $2,500 if it is paid by Oct. 1, 2015, and $300 in court costs and probation fees.
Berganio was required to write a letter of apology and have it published in local newspapers.
As part of the plea deal, the remaining charge of theft by failure to make required disposition of funds received was dismissed.
Assistant attorney general Clayton Graef prosecuted the case. Assistant public defender Michael Sato served as counsel for Berganio.
According to police, their investigation began on Nov. 3, 2011, when Zacarias Sakisat went to the Department of Public Safety to file a complaint against Berganio.
According to the complaint, Zacarias Sakisat’s wife, Yingshun, paid $300 to Berganio in May 2010 for the processing fee for her permanent registration application.
In June 2010, the Sakisat couple brought Berganio to the Chalan Kanoa Post Office to purchase money order worth $1,700 as payment for Yingshun Sakisat’s permanent registration application.
Berganio presented Yingshun Sakisat with a filled-out money order form and asked for another $20 as payment for sending the money order.
Berganio told Yingshun Sakisat to wait for two to three weeks to receive through mail the documents regarding her permanent registration application.
The documents never came.
Yingshun Sakisat learned from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in November 2010 that its Hawaii Office never received any application for the permanent registration that she applied for.
Police learned that copies of the receipts of the money order obtained from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security indicated that none of the transactions was for the processing of Yingshun Sakisat’s application.
