Robber arrested after picking wrong victim

A suspected robber picked the wrong victim yesterday after he robbed a policewoman assigned as the close-in security of Governor Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday morning along J. Luna Street in front of a mall in the North Reclamation Area.

The suspect who was arrested by his would-be victim, PO2 Vilma Degamo, 36, was identified as Ronilo Bastatas, 22, of sitio Tabay, barangay Mabolo, who works as a carwatcher in the area.

Degamo who is a member of the Cebu Provincial Police Office and assigned to the Office of the Provincial Governor was not in uniform when the robbery happened.

According to SPO1 Julius Ompad, investigator of the Waterfront Police Station, Degamo was waiting for a ride for Cebu Business Park when the suspect accompanied by another man approached her and grabbed her bag.

Degamo when interviewed by The Freeman said when the suspect threatened her with a knife she shouted for help and introduced herself as a police officer to scare the suspects.

"Akong giingnan silang put- ina! Polis ko! Nagpaila gyud ko aron hadlukon sila ba, gibira man gihapon akong bag atong usa," Degamo said.

After grabbing her handbag, the suspects then started running prompting Degamo to chase them along the road leading to sitio Tabay in Mabolo, all the time she was shouting for help and introducing herself as a police officer.

Her heels of her high-heeled shoes were broken during chase but she just picked it up and ran after the suspects barefoot.

Just then a man on a motorcycle stopped and offered her a ride to catch up with the suspects.

Degamo said she again yelled to the suspects to give up and again introduced herself as a police officer, then the robber who was carrying the bag reportedly left the bag on the road then ran away.

The bag contained Degamo's 9mm Beretta service pistol loaded with live bullets, a cellular phone worth P3,000 a wallet with P5,000 cash and personal effects and IDs.

She got her gun and was able to subdue one of the robbers when she caught up with them in sitio Crossing, barangay Carreta.

The robber who was later identified as a certain "Negro" escaped but bystanders ganged up on Bastatas when he tried to run away.

Bastatas was brought to Waterfront police station where he is temporarily detained pending the filing of charges against him today before the city prosecutor's office.

Bastatas, when interviewed by The Freeman, said he did the act in order to pay his rent because after losing his job at a plastic factory last month.

Despite complaining of the sores in her feet Degamo was still able to thank the unidentified motorist who helped her in catching the suspect. - Edwin Ian Melecio/BRP