AT LEAST 18 individuals, who claimed to have been deceived by a woman who sold them fraudulent land properties and took away P4.8 million, sought the help of Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard Chan on Monday, February 19, 2024.
According to the buyers, they individually paid a total of P4.8 million to Glenda (not her real name) for the purchase of 1,400 square meters of land in Barangay Canjulao. The suspect, however, did not provide them with proper deed of sale documents.
The Lapu-Lapu City Government refused to disclose complete information on the suspect, saying a case has not been filed yet.
Some of the victims also reported that Glenda swindled them in 2022 and has yet to return the money she took from them since she failed to deliver the land documents.
The suspect reportedly posted her land properties for sale on Facebook, promising that they could be purchased through staggered payments for an affordable price.
The victims reported that Glenda had an accomplice named Mark, who acted as her agent.
Chan invited them both on Monday to explain what happened, but only Glenda showed up.
In Monday's meeting, it was found out that the land in question still has a pending case for the recovery of its land title in court.
Also, during verification from the City's Register of Deeds, it was found out that there was no land registered under Glenda s name within Lapu-Lapu City.
Chan instructed Glenda to return to his office with his alleged accomplice Mark on Tuesday, February 20, and return the victim's money. If they fail to do so, the City will pursue a case against them.
In a chat message sent to SunStar Cebu on Tuesday, Marky Bautista, the Lapu-Lapu City public information officer, said that Glenda and Mark failed to return the money.
Chan said the two individuals could face charges for committing large-scale estafa and for violating the Republic Act 10175, or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
Chan also noted that Glenda has a history of scamming people by selling fake lots.
He said a resident named Jasper paid Glenda P1.2 million for a lot, only to find out that the ownership was not registered under his name through the Register of Deeds.
In 2023, Jasper approached Chan's office to also seek help.
Although Glenda eventually returned Jasper's money, Chan warned her not to repeat such illegal acts. (HIC)