EDITORIAL — Petty theft still a thing

As per a news report in Brigada News, a 15-year-old student lost her cellphone to a snatcher recently in Cebu City.

According to the report, the incident happened around 5 A.M. last Friday, August 28, when the student was headed to school. The Public Utility Jeepney (PUJ) she was riding stopped at corner Tres de Abril Street and N. Bacalso Avenue when a man got on then suddenly grabbed her phone before running off in the direction of Barangay Labangon.

The suspect has yet to be found and the phone recovered.

Because we should strive to make every incident a teachable moment, including unfortunate ones, this incident --insignificant as it may seem for some-- should be a warning that petty theft is still very much a thing in Cebu City.

Some years back, the risk of snatchers was enough to deter commuters from using their cellphone and other gadgets openly in PUJs. However, that attitude changed with the previous administration’s tough reputation against crime, including petty theft.

It cannot be denied that during those times people felt safe enough to use their gadgets in public. But, apparently, these are different times.

And while this particular incident can be considered an isolated one --we haven’t come across a cellphone snatching report for a while now-- we should still learn from it and not take it for granted.

The public must be warned that there are still people out there desperate enough to steal at every opportunity they can, and that those very persons can just sit beside them in a PUJ. They must also be warned that they aren’t always completely safe in public transport.

We suppose that learning a little restraint or patience can also go a long way to prevent possible crime and the resulting heartbreak and trauma. Is there really a need to be on internet, and thus make ourselves a target of thieves, while we are commuting?