Enrile 'grandson' gets cheap thrill from con jobs

MANILA, Philippines – A man claiming to be a grandson of Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile admitted to getting his kicks by deceiving at least two restaurants in a Pasay City mall last week.

“I really don’t know what I was thinking... cheap thrill lang eh,” said Alvin Mayoralgo, 32, in a taped interview with The STAR.

Mayoralgo was arrested on Feb. 12 at the Pasay mall for deceiving three restaurants by complaining that some of the food items he ordered the night before were not included in his takeout bag.

During the interview, Mayoralgo claimed he only deceived two shops: a restaurant serving Mediterranean food, and a donut shop.

Mayoralgo, a call center agent, insisted he really left a food item at the third restaurant, which serves barbecued dishes. He, however, was not able to present the receipt during the confrontation and instead introduced himself as Enrile’s grandson when asked for an identification card.

Both restaurants gave in to his demand. He said he would tell the establishments’ supervisors “I am Senator Enrile’s grandson.”

The identification card he would present bears the name of Achilles Ponce Enrile. Mayoralgo said he has applied at a call center using that name, which he claims is his “real” birth name.

The senator has denied knowing Mayoralgo and ordered his arrest last year, after he told investigators at a Quezon City police station that he, “a grandson of Enrile,” had been robbed.