Motorcycle used by jewelry stores’ robbers recovered

ONE of the three motorcycles that the robbers used to break into two jewelry stores past 11 a.m. on Thursday, August 8, 2024, on Calderon Street in Barangay Ermita, Cebu City, was found by the authorities.

This was confirmed by Carbon Police Station Chief Major Philip John Libres.

The bandits sped off with P14 million worth of jewelry in less than two minutes.

Libres claimed that the motorcycle was captured on CCTV camera abandoned in the area after the robbers switched to another vehicle.

Libres had already asked the Land Transportation Office for permission to examine the motorcycle's registration documents and perform a macro itching on the engine.

Based on the CCTV footage, two men were seen riding that motorcycle and parking at the back of the large Burgos store at 11:44 a.m., and after that, they crossed the street with a big bag.

"Nakita sila nga nag kuha sa parking ticket so 11:44 a.m. ni naog sila, then ang usa ni labang so mao ni ang atung gi track karon kung asa siya ni sakay or posibling gi pick up og sakyanan kay katong milabang mao to ang nagdala og bag," Libres said.

(They were seen getting a parking ticket at 11:44 a.m., then one of them crossed the street. So that is what we track down now since the person who crossed had a bag with him, we are following where he was riding and whether or not he was picked up by a car).

Libres said they would retrace the CCTV footage to determine where exactly they got off the motorcycle when they fled.

The two motorcycles turned to Lincoln Street while the other one went straight to Carbon Public Market.

The Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) asked the public to assist them in identifying the culprits while promising to settle the issue as quickly as possible.

Libres stated that immediately after the crime, they reviewed every CCTV clip of the downtown Cebu City streets where the robbers might have traveled through.

Meanwhile, CCPO Chief Colonel Antonietto Cañete said they are working hard to investigate the crime, but they would not comment on the 48-hour ultimatum issued by Acting Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia.

However, he disclosed that the reward Garcia offered would be of great help in finding the perpetrators.

Libres revealed that all police stations in the Cebu province, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG 7), and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI 7) have joined in their effort to locate the six armed individuals who stole not less than P10 million and P4 million worth of jewelry from Macy’s Gold and Silver Jewelry and DGC D’Gold Chain Jewelry, respectively.

As of this writing, the two jewelry stores have not yet submitted an inventory about the exact amount of jewelry that the robbers had taken. (AYB, TPT)