Police identified the three suspects as Fredmark Brigoli, of Lomboy Street, Banawa; Rodulfo Tamayo, of A. Lopez Street, Barangay Labangon; and Raymund Omega, of Hillsview Village, Barangay Tisa.
Korean Richard Kim, temporarily living in Barangay Mabolo, positively identified the three as the ones who fooled him into paying the initial amount for a barge he was buying from Manila-based Sandoval Shipyard.
PO3 Rene Cerna said Kim asked for help from the police after he later found out from the shipping company that the three are not its representatives and that it is not selling any barge.
Kim owns Fastem Trading, which is engaged in buying and selling ship scraps.
After some negotiations, Kim eventually paid the suspects P80,000 in cash as partial payment with the balance to be collected by the three at an uptown hotel by Saturday.
But Kim became suspicious, prompting him to make some verification with Sandoval Shipyard.
Kim then contacted the Fuente Police, which in turn, planned the entrapment at the time earlier agreed by Kim and the suspects. As agreed, Kim would use a marked check of P250,000 to give to the suspects.
Kim alerted Cerna as soon as the suspects received the check. The suspects are now detained at the city police awaiting the filing of estafa charges against them today. — Freeman News Service