Grocery clerk released after days in jail for stolen corned beef
The 21-year-old Paul Matthew Tanglao was released Monday afternoon after his mother posted bail amounting to P2,000. File
MANILA, Philippines — The supermarket clerk who was charged for stealing a can of corned beef has been released more than a week after he was detained.
PO2 Kenneth Campos of Sta. Ana police station in Manila told Philstar.com that Paul Matthew Tanglao, 21, was released Monday afternoon after his mother posted bail of P2,000.
Tanglao, who confessed to the crime, was charged with qualified theft.
According to reports, a security guard caught Tanglao hiding a can of corned beef worth P31.50 in his apron on December 11.
He was then accosted and brought to the police station.
Tanglao said he “was really hungry” that day and that he “didn’t have money.”
The supermarket clerk has drawn sympathy from social media users, many of whom noted that accused plunderers get acquitted while the poor are jailed over canned goods.
The incident has also raised questions on equitable pay for employees like Tanglao, who, according to reports, did not have enough money in his pocket for fare home.
Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David on Monday appealed for Tanglao's release.
In a Facebook post, the vice president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines said that he is willing to repay Tanglao’s employer “a hundred times over.”
"Already one week in jail for stealing a can of corned beef worth P31.50. It was 5:45 p.m.; he hadn’t had lunch and he was hungry. Please, for heaven’s sake, let’s get this man out of jail!" David said.
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