Tuesday, April 08, 2008 Bank was ‘possible target’ of break-in
A SCHEDULED power interruption may have saved a nearby bank from getting burglarized last Sunday.
Theft and Robbery Section Chief Michael Bastes said that members of the “Acetylene Gang” thought they had until yesterday, a holiday, to fill their bags with money and walk away with cash from the Bank of the Philippine Islands Express Banking Center beside the Market Center complex.
But because the management of the hotel they were staying in informed them that all guests had to check out of the hotel by noon Sunday, they had to act quickly.
Rather than leave empty-handed, Bastes surmised that they decided to make up for all their expenses and break into the complex.
Bastes said the hotel management was forced to tell their guests to check out because there was a scheduled power interruption and that they had yet to fix their generator.
At least six persons, including a woman, are believed responsible for the break in of eight stalls at the Market Center.
Two men checked in at different times last Friday.
Two other men also reportedly checked in last Thursday and were billeted on the fifth floor.
They asked for a room transfer because their room was not near the fire exit. However, hotel policy does not allow this, so they ended up checking out.
The next day, a woman and another companion checked in and told the front desk that their companions left a box of tools in the other room and that they needed to get
it.
The front desk staff told investigators that they already found this suspicious.
Check
Bastes said that if they had informed authorities, the police would have checked on the personalities involved and could have prevented the break-in.
Bastes said the hotel employees are willing to cooperate in the investigation.
They will be asked to give a description of the guests acting suspiciously since Saturday so that a cartographic sketch could be made of the suspects.
Some employees will also have to undergo a polygraph test.
Bastes said they are now checking 10 members of the “acetylene gang.”
While police have no evidence to pin them down yet, the 10 members have existing records of being involved in this kind of operation, he said.
As for Sunday’s heist, he said two of the suspects are from Luzon.
Bastes also appealed to small pension houses throughout the city to be extra vigilant and to immediately inform his office if they notice anything suspicious.
He added that most of these gangs check in on weekends and target establishments that do not have security guards.
As for owners of pawnshops and financial institutions situated near these pension houses, Bastes asked that they also check on their branches even on weekends because this is usually when most gangs strike. (MEA)
