Holdup of LGU treasurer probed

NAVAL, BILIRAN , Philippines — Police of this town are now investigating the robbery incident here last March 1 when four municipal employees of nearby Kawayan town were held up at gun point by a still unidentified robber, according to a PIA-8 report.

Initial reports showed the Kawayan municipal treasurer, together with an agricultural technician, a senior bookkeeper and the LGU driver lost to the robbers a total of P421,380.84 in cash intended for the salary of day-care employees.

Chief Insp. Renencio Raquipo, chief of Naval Police Station, said in a telephone interview that they conducted a follow-up investigation of the crime last March 5, in Kawayan town .

Raquipo said they took statements of municipal department heads of Kawayan including the victims themselves.

“We will get the video footage of the CCTV camera at a gasoline station where the supposed hold-up took place ... and perhaps get a look of the unidentified hitchhiker who rode on the government service vehicle,” Raquipo said.

The robber only got the bag of the municipal treasurer containing the cash money and the cellular phone of the driver before walking casually from the crime scene, as narrated by one of the passengers of the LGU car, he said.

An artist from the Crime Lab of the Police Regional Office-8 headquarters arrived here yesterday to make a sketch of the suspect, based on testimonies of the victims. The suspect, believed to be between 35-40 years old, had no mask or bonnet to hide his identity at the time of the robbery.  (FREEMAN)