THIS appeal to the city’s police is from a grandfather whose granddaughter lost her wallet and cell phone on her way to school early Wednesday morning.

That was the second time she was victimized in about a month.

The first time, her bag was picked inside the jeepney she took from corner Escario St. and Gorordo Ave., down to the junction of Echavez St. and General Maxilom Ave.

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The second time was different. Five unkempt roughnecks rode in the jeepney she took going to her school on F. Ramos St. Two of them hemmed her between them. Only a male passenger outside of the five was with her, and he sat by the door.

One of the five moved from his seat across her and sat between her and the other passenger. He surreptitiously fondled her arm obviously to distract her. Only 16, she froze with fear.

The other man on her left took her wallet and her cell phone.

When they reached the junction of F.Ramos St. and Maxilom, the five casually alighted.

My granddaughter, Euka Roperos Beloria, was crying when brought home by her classmates. She was traumatized by the experience and terrified to see men in rugged work clothes.

I am sure she is not the only one who went through a similar traumatic experience, and I wonder what our law enforcers are doing to make jeepney travel for our young kids safe.

I am sure that if our city police will do their job well, petty crimes can easily be stopped. Unless, of course, some of our police elements are in connivance with the perpetrators.

I do not want to believe it could happen, but consider that even a policeman’s wife “has accused operatives of the Cebu City Police Office of stealing P300,000 from her.”

My granddaughter, accompanied by her concerned classmates, had the incident placed in the police blotter in Gorordo Ave. and in Fuente Osmeña.

I hope, for the sake of a diminished and deteriorating confidence in our city police, that we would soon hear of apprehensions or arrests of lawless elements that prey on defenseless and innocent young students who should have only their lessons for the day in their minds while on the way to or back from school, instead of traumatic fear in their hearts.

I deeply hope that the next time I hear or read reports in our print or broadcast media in the city, it will be about the arrest of petty criminals that target students riding in jeepneys.