BY JEN BAYLON
BACOLOD City – Robbery charges have been filed against five individuals apprehended for allegedly stealing underground cable wires worth P750,000 along Handumanan Access Road in Barangay Mansilingan in this city.
According to Police Captain Andy Ofalia, head of Police Station 7, the suspects were guised as linemen of a telecommunications company when spotted by patrolling officers.
The suspects were identified as Freddie Jagocoy, 49, and John Lloyd Jagocoy, 18, residents of Barangay Tabunan in Bago City, Negros Occidental; Rowel Baylon and Brendo Francisco, both 33 years old and residents of Quezon City; and Bryan Riano, 37, a resident of Romblon.
Three other unidentified suspects remain at large as of this writing.
The police also confirmed that the arrested individuals, who initially presented fake access passes and working permits, have never been employees of the telecommunication company concerned.
Authorities have also determined that the dump truck used in the robbery was owned by the husband of a Bago City village official. It was originally used for quarry operations.
The vehicle was reportedly loaned to one of the suspects, the truck owner’s cousin, for P5,000. However, the owner claimed it was without his knowledge that the vehicle would be used in the robbery on Saturday afternoon, Feb. 17.
Five days prior, on Feb. 12, the suspects checked into a lodging house in Barangay Taculing. They claimed to be only following orders and believed their operation was legitimate.
Authorities have raised the possibility that an organized group may be behind the cable theft, given the completeness of the suspects’ equipment and resources. Investigations are also underway to determine whether the suspects have been involved in similar incidents in the city.
Meanwhile, the truck owner, according to the police, must demonstrate in court his non-involvement in the commission of the crime and that lending the vehicle was made in good faith./PN
