Labor Secretary’s Phone Recovered After Being Sold
LABOR SECRETARY’S PHONE RECOVERED – Last week, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III’s phone was snatched while he was stuck in traffic.
While inside his car, Bello had a hard time finding a signal for his phone. So, he decided to open his windows in an attempt to get a better signal. However, instead of receiving a better signal, his phone got snatched instead.
Luckily, the Manila Police District theft and robbery section quickly recovered the stolen phone. According to Maj. Joselito de Ocampo, two suspects, both minors, were arrested in Quiapo. Meanwhile, a follow-up operation led to the arrest of two other minors.
Furthermore, investigations led authorities to believe the suspects were part of the JD robbery group. Additionally, the group was reported to be responsible for an onslaught of robberies within Manila.
Bello’s iPhone 11 was stolen while near Manila City Hall and Mehan Garden on Friday afternoon. Based on a Philstar report, the two initially arrested suspects admitted to ordering a 15-year-old boy to snatch the Labor Secretary’s phone. The suspects previously had records for robbery charges except for the 15-year-old boy.
Following the theft, the suspects said they sold the phone for P25,000 to Omar Marohom Sidic, who owns a shop in Quiapo. Afterward, Sidic said he sold the phone to a woman for P34,000. However, the woman said she wasn’t aware that the phone was stolen.
Sidic then returned the money to the buyer to recover the Labor Secretary’s phone. But, Sidic was still arrested for violating the anti-fencing law. Meanwhile, instead of pushing for punishments, Bello offered the minors jobs and didn’t press any charges.
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