Thane school clerk arrested for pocketing students’ fees

A school clerk was arrested on cheating and forgery charges by the Rabodi police. Lourdes Pereira (53) used to forge the fee receipts of Holy Cross Convent School students and divert the fee money for her personal use.

A school clerk was arrested on cheating and forgery charges by the Rabodi police. Lourdes Pereira (53) used to forge the fee receipts of Holy Cross Convent School students and divert the fee money for her personal use.

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“On September 12, we received a complaint from the school principal Sister Anna Maria Fernandes (36) stating that Pereira, instead of depositing the fees in the bank, had used them. She managed to commit a fraud worth Rs 12,39,800,” said senior police inspector Sidharth Wagh.

“After the complaint was registered, Pereira was absconding. When we received information that she was back home, we arrested her on November 2.”

The police said that the fraud was committed in the primary school section during the second term of the academic year from December 2008 to May 2009 and the school only realised it now.

“There were irregularities in their audit reports. Pereira would take a photocopy of a student’s fee receipt and then give the photocopy to another student after taking the fees. Thus, there was no record of this transaction,” said inspector S.B.
Nighot.

The police have booked Pereira for criminal breach of trust, cheating and forgery.

The police, however, have not yet been able to recover the money nor find out the reason why she committed the fraud.

“We are trying to find whether she spent the money to buy something or has deposited it in a bank. She is a divorcee and
stays with her younger son and his family. We have been interrogating her but she is not very cooperative,” said Nighot.
Pereira has been remanded in police custody till Friday.