Monday, July 28, 2008 Bolt cutter gang eyed in 3rd Internet shop heist
ANOTHER major robbery was perpetrated on a third Internet shop within Baguio City in the past two weeks by what the police believe could be the same "bolt cutter" gang.
However, while only 17 computer units worth P170,000 were stolen from two Internet shops in Central Guisad and Puliwes last July 14 and 15, 18 computers valued at P234,000 were carted away by burglars from another computer shop located at Kias in the wee hours of July 25.
The victim in this third but largest heist on an Internet shop within the past few days was identified Sunday on records of the Baguio City Police Office (BCPO) as Jay Estepa Acosta, 29, married, a businessman from Urdaneta, Pangasinan, who resides here at Purok 4 of Kias.
His rented Internet shop, however, is located at 7075 Purok 7, Kias.
According to the victim, they closed and properly locked up their Internet shop before going home around 9 p.m. of July 24.
However, when they returned around 6:20 a.m. on Sunday, they were surprised to discover that all 18 computers were missing.
After this incident was reported to the police, a team from BCPO Station 4 led by Senior Police Officer (SPO) 1 George Cupido and a separate scene-of-the-crime operations (Soco) team from the Philippine National Police (PNP) Crime Laboratory led by SPO2 Juan Piggangay responded to the area to conduct an investigation.
An initial investigation of this robbery case disclosed that the still unidentified burglars broke into the place by destroying the padlock on the main door "with the use of unidentified instruments."
The forcibly opened main door was reported to be used as both their ingress and egress points.
Senior Inspector Gabriel Pablo, BCPO Station 4 chief, said a follow-up probe into this case was still ongoing as of press time on Sunday.
In an earlier report, the same or another robbery gang broke into and carted off a total of 17 computer units from two Internet shops on opposite sides of Baguio within a matter of hours from the late night of July 14 to the wee hours of the morning of July 15.
The way by which these shops were entered into led police investigators to believe the same gang is operating in Baguio, preying on computer shops. (ENO)
