Friday, July 25, 2008 Police raise warning v. suspected swindler
POLICE warned well-to-do families and those living in subdivisions in Metro Cebu against a swindler who preys on house helpers by pretending to be a relative of the owner.
“Please advise your house helpers not to easily trust strangers who arrive in the doorsteps. They could be swindlers who are out to victimize you,” Senior Insp. Michael Anthony Bastes said yesterday.
Bastes, of the Cebu City Police Office’s Theft and Robbery Section, issued the advisory following an incident last Wednesday afternoon when the suspect managed to enter a house in Andres Abellana Ext., Barangay Guadalupe and run off with P50,000 cash and more than P400,000 worth of jewelry.
Bastes identified the suspect as Michael C. Tupas, 26, who was earlier arrested by police but was able to post bail.
Tupas is described to be mestizo-looking, wears decent outfit and usually arrives at his target house on board a car.
In last Wednesday’s incident in Guadalupe, Tupas reportedly arrived past 2 p.m. in the house of Albert P. Liao on board a red Toyota Vios car.
Tupas, who was later identified by Liao’s two housemaids through the TRS Rogues’ Gallery, reportedly told the housemaids he was a relative of Liao’s wife.
The suspect convinced one of the housemaids to go with him in Barangay Labangon to pick up the package reportedly sent by Liao’s mother abroad.
One of the housemaids agreed to go with Tupas in Labangon. Tupas then left the housemaid in a restaurant where she was made to drink a bottle of softdrink.
Tupas left the housemaid in the restaurant reportedly because needed to go back to Guadalupe to get some papers for his “Tita,” referring to the wife of Liao.
When Tupas arrived in Guadalupe, he reportedly told the other housemaid that he was directed by his “Tita” to get some papers inside the couple’s room.
The housemaid allowed Tupas to get inside the room, where the suspect took the P50,000 cash inside the steel vault, a Rolex wrist watch worth P200,000 and assorted jewelry worth more than P200,000.
Bastes said Tupas has long been operating in Metro Cebu. He was earlier arrested by TRS for the same offense but was able to post P20,000 as bail.
Tupas, according to Bastes, is also wanted in Iloilo and Bacolod.
Bastes appealed to the public to immediately coordinate with the police if they see Tupas in their area.
They may call the TRS Office at 233-6703, the police hotline 166 or the nearest police station. (JST)
