ABOUT eight to 10 armed men robbed a jewelry store inside Gaisano City Mall in Barangay Singcang-Airport, Bacolod City last night.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Ariel Pico, spokesperson of Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO), said the unidentified assailants, who were armed with long and short firearms destroyed the glass of the jewelry store using a hammer and took assorted jewelries around 7 p.m.
The suspects fled on board motorcycles toward the north direction of Bacolod.
Pico said they already checked the closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera of the mall to determine the identity of the suspects.
“We are conducting a follow-up operation along with the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (Nocppo) to arrest the suspects,” he said.
He added the police are also coordinating with owner of the jewelry shop to determine the value of stolen jewelries.
Pico said there’s a possibility that the suspects are members of “martilyo gang” and it’s a well-planned robbery.
“They also have a look-out, inside and outside the mall, to materialize their plan,” he said.
Pico added that most of BCPO’s personnel were assigned Wednesday at the Ceres South Terminal and the suspects might have taken the opportunity to strike in Bacolod.
Village chief Rosinie Distrito of Barangay Singcang-Airport said it just took a minute for the suspects to rob the jewelry store.
“Aside from the mall security guards, BCPO usually deployed its personnel inside the mall and it was only on Wednesday night that they were not here because of the tension at Ceres South Terminal,” he added.
Pico urged the business establishments to be vigilant to avoid similar incidents while Distrito also urged those establishments within his areas of jurisdiction to install CCTV and to hire security guards.