Pawnshop manager flees with P13 million worth of jewelries in Cotabato

COTABATO CITY, Philippines - The police on Friday launched a hunt for a manager of a local pawnshop who disappeared bringing with her P13 million worth of pawned jewelries.

In a blotter, the Cotabato City police precinct 1 identified the suspect as Maria Sally Garcia, more known as Sally to co-workers and friends in the city.

Police investigators and the owner of the pawnshop had asked reporters here not to name the establishment yet pending the completion of an inventory of the missing jewelries.

The pawnshop management on Thursday reported to the police the disappearance of Garcia, who allegedly took with her P13 million worth of jewelries kept in the vault of the establishment.

Garcia had full access to the pawnshop’s safety vault.  

Suspicions that she had stolen jewelries gained credence when co-workers found out she had pawned to other pawnshops at least 423 jewelry items, which probers helped recover with the help of a local court.

The police had invited for questioning Garcia’s co-workers, Irene Culong, Emiliana Santos Bueno, Ely Ecayan Dechosa, Delia Cabales Camacho, Cherrylene Sia Catalina and Arbel Garcia, to help build an air-tight case against the suspect.