Woman loses P300T to robbers

CEBU, Philippines - A woman lost around P300,000 cash after she was robbed on her way to a pawnshop along Leyson Street, Barangay Talamban, Cebu City, Monday morning.

 Sheila Waters, a native of Inopacan, Leyte, but presently residing along Lilac Parsian Street, Mahogany Subdivision, Barangay Tawason, Mandaue City, reported to the police that she was victimized by two armed men on a motorcycle.

 Waters said she was on her way to a pawnshop after just leaving another pawnshop and used the skywalk when a man followed her and robbed her.

 Waters said the man opened her bag and got the P300,000. After the incident, the man fled towards Barangay Bacayan, Cebu City, on a motorcycle driven by another man.

She said the P300,000 was an allowance allotted for her and her child. She also told the police she was supposed to send the money to her sibling in Leyte.

PO2 Jud Jacquez, desk officer of Talamban Police Station, said they had doubts with the allegations of Waters since the robbers did not get her shoulder bag but reportedly chose to open her bag and get the P300,000 himself.

“Ang hold-upper mismo ang niabli sa bag ug nikuha sa kwarta. Wa na lang gyud kuhaa ang bag,” he said. 

Waters told the police that before she was robbed, she came from a bank in AS Fortuna Street where she made a transaction. She did not reveal the name of the bank.

 She then proceeded to another bank in Barangay Talamban but since the line was too long, she went to a money remittance center instead which was 200 meters away, Jacquez said.

However, Waters allegedly decided to transfer to another pawnshop located beside the police station because she did not have the requirements that pawnshop asked for.

 Jacquez said that Waters can actually disembark from the jeepney to cross the street going to the pawnshop but she chose to use the skywalk which is a little farther than the pawnshop.

 “Milapas gyud siya padung sa skywalk nga mas layo-layo. Pwede ra man siya monaog atbang sa pawnshop. Naandan man daw niya moagi sa skywalk,” he said.

 Jacquez said that during the follow-up investigation they conducted, no one reported noticing a robbery in the skywalk around that time on Monday.

 “Daghan man tawo atong panahona. Wa gyud bisag isa nakahibawo o nakabantay man lang nga naay gi-hold-up,” he said.

 Jacquez further cited that they received a call Monday afternoon from a personnel of Cebu City Traffic Operations and Management, inquiring if Waters was indeed robbed.

 The CITOM personnel, who did not give his identity, told the police that someone told them that Waters owes a huge amount of money to her cousin in Leyte.

 Jacquez said that they are still conducting follow-up investigation to check the veracity of the allegations of Waters. — (FREEMAN)