A 24-YEAR-OLD woman was arrested by operatives of the National Bureau of Investigation-Cebu District Office (NBI-Cebdo) after she was caught selling fake non-professional driver's licenses in front of the Mandaue City Hall on Wednesday, October 11, 2023.
Authorities identified the suspect as Gia Fernandez Genelaso, a resident of Barangay Labangon in Cebu City.
In a press conference on Thursday, October 12, 2023, NBI-Cebdo Agent-in Charge Arnel Pura said it took them about a week to put the suspect and her illegal activity, which has been transacted through social media, under surveillance before they initiated the entrapment operation Wednesday.
Pura said an NBI agent acted as one of her clients and asked her to process a non-professional driver's license obtained at the Land Transportation Office (LTO) for P1,500.
Throughout the transaction, Pura said the suspect assured their agent he could get his driver's license without passing a driving test and complying with the LTO's qualification requirements, such as completion of at least eight hours of Practical Driving Course from an LTO accredited driving school and a valid Student-Driver's Permit, among other conditions.
On Wednesday, October 11, Genelaso went to Mandaue to hand in the driver's license paid through Cash on Delivery and got arrested by the NBI.
Pura said they sent the license to the LTO-Central Visayas to examine its authenticity.
Upon arrest of the suspect, Pura said the NBI also recovered more counterfeited IDs from Genelaso's possession, including five Government Service Insurance System-Unified Multi-Purpose ID, five National IDs, three postal IDs, two Bureau of Internal Revenue Tax Identification Number cards, one PhilHealth card, and one Social Security System ID.
The NBI was also able to confiscate her getaway motorcycle. (HIC)