Can obedience be considered as an exempting circumstance for charges of dishonesty in work dismissal cases?

Dear PAO,

Some of my colleagues were charged with serious misconduct for allegedly falsifying their time cards. From what we know, one of the reasons for the alleged falsification was due to my co-employees' obedience to our superior instructing them to go to various places to accompany the latter in his private affairs. Having said these, can it be considered a defense to exonerate or exempt my co-employees from the charges that they were merely obeying the orders of our superior/boss?