The Supreme Court last month convicted a government engineer for forgery and embezzlement. Tshering Phuntsho was found to have embezzled over Nu 60,000 during the construction of an irrigation channel in Yangtse Gewog in Trashi Yangtse.
The court gave him a one-year concurrent prison term but he can pay in lieu of the imprisonment. Since he paid back the amount he embezzled, he was ordered to pay 24 per cent of the amount as penal interest which amounts to over Nu 60,000.
According to sources, he had forged the signature of skilled labour to embezzle money and also made a false claim of over Nu 10,000.
The Dzongkhag Administration submitted a report to ACC regarding the non-completion of the irrigation channel and misuse of funds by the site engineer in 2015.
Kinley Dem
Edited by Yeshi Gyaltshen