Cebu lawmaker robbed while at home

CEBU CITY -- The family of Cebu Provincial Board (PB) Member Julian Daan lost an estimated P1 million worth of jewelry when a robber barged into his house Monday while the lawmaker worked on a radio drama script.

The robber, said Daan, held him up at knifepoint.

The robbery occurred around 9:50 a.m. in Daan's house in Palmview Village, Barangay Tabunok, Talisay City.

"Alam ko board member ka, may pera (I know you're a PB member; you must have money)," he quoted the robber as saying.

At first, Daan thought it was a joke. He appealed to the masked robber to spare his life, after realizing the man was serious.

In her news conference, Governor Gwendolyn Garcia said she will discuss with Cebu Provincial Police Office Acting Director Patrocinio Comendador the need to secure Daan.

"Certainly, we will extend assistance to Board Member Daan, as far as security is concerned," the governor said.

She will also take up with Comendador the allegedly slow response of the Talisay City police, which she said should be investigated.

The PB member and a helper were the only ones at home when an unidentified man, armed with a knife, barged in.

Daan's wife Yolanda, a former candidate for the PB, was not around when the robbery took place. Daan was not hurt.

Police said the robber took the assorted jewelry from a drawer in the couple's bedroom. He also ran off with P300 cash.

A police investigator told Sun.Star Cebu the robber had an accomplice who served as a lookout. The culprits remained at large Monday.

Daan was typing (on a manual typewriter) a drama episode for his daily radio show when the lone robber barged into his house, grabbed his neck and poked a knife at him.

Daan said he led the man to the master's bedroom, where the jewelry was kept. Diamond pieces were part of the collection.

The robber scooped up the jewelry after the PB member broke the lock. Daan said he didn't know where the key was.

Not contented, the robber also took the P300 cash Daan had on him and detained the board member and his househelp inside the room.

Police believe the suspect had jumped over the perimeter fence of Daan's house, because there was no sign of a forced entry at the main gate.

Chief Inspector Eddie Recamara, acting chief of the Talisay City Police Station, said the suspect probably waited until only Daan and his helper were left in the house.

Daan's wife had just left for work when the suspect barged into the house. Initial reports said she later complained that it took the police a long time to arrive.

Investigators said it appeared the robber was familiar with the household's daily routines.

Clad in a black shirt and a pair of jeans, the robber was 5'5" tall, with big eyes and a small build, said Daan. The PB member said he is confident he can identify the man, even if the latter partly covered his face with a cloth, if he sees him again.

Daan said the man's Tagalog was poor.

Meanwhile, Governor Garcia urged other officials who are being harassed for enforcing the law and stopping illegal activities to make a formal request for a close-in aide, if they want one.

"So we could respond promptly, we need their formal requests so we can be more enlightened," the governor said. She has received reports that a barangay official in Lapu-Lapu City is being harassed because of the campaign against illegal fishers.

Member Daan was listed absent from Monday's PB session, apparently still shaken from his ordeal. (GC/OCP of Sun.Star Cebu/With JFT of Sun.Star Cebu SuperBalita)