Car thief collared right inside Crame

No wonder car thefts are rampant in Metro Manila.

A suspected car thief freely entered Camp Crame and tried to drive away with a police official's car after getting the keys from the victim's office.

Mario Jumao-As would have escaped with the car of Senior Superintendent Cesario Yulo, chief of staff of the Police Community Relations Group (PCRG), had not Police Officer 1 Nestor Cruz spotted him.

Cruz, who is Yulo's driver, saw Jumao-As open Yulo's Daihatsu Feroza while it was parked in front of the PCRG building.

Suspicious, Cruz immediately asked Yulo if he had allowed anybody to drive the Feroza. When Yulo said he had not, Cruz ran after the car as Jumao-As was about to drive the Feroza out of the PCRG parking lot.

In trying to stop the Feroza, Cruz jumped on the running board and, while holding onto the door, tried to wrestle control of the steering wheel from Jumao-As.

The commotion was spotted by camp guards, who immediately came to the assistance of Cruz.

Cruz told investigators that Yulo does not know Jumao-As, but Jumao-As said he had worked as an informant for Yulo.

Jumao-As, who appeared incoherent, said that "a voice from a computer" told him to take Yulo's car and drive it away.

Jumao-As was later transferred to the custody of the Traffic Management Group. He will be charged with car theft.