Lawyer nabbed over fake gold bar

MANILA, Philippines — A lawyer and a businesswoman were arrested for duping two Japanese visitors into buying a fake gold bar for P3.1 million in Manila over the weekend.

John Alicdan Kollin, 52, of Irisan, Baguio City, and Arlene Ohgiku, 39, of Barangay San Jose in Rodriguez, Rizal, were apprehended during an entrapment operation at the New World Hotel along Pedro Gil street in Ermita.

A third suspect, Rolando Sanchez, remains at large.

The arrest of Kollin and Ohgiku stemmed from the complaint of Jun Shirakawa and Akashi Tsutomu.

 According to Shirakawa, he met the suspects while he was visiting Manila in July.

He said the three told him that they were into gold mining and offered to sell a gold bar.

Shirakawa said he gave the suspects an initial payment of P230,000. He promised to pay the balance once he returned to the Philippines.

Shirakawa learned that the gold bar was fake when he arrived in Japan.

He filed a complaint with the Manila Police District when he returned to the country on Saturday, prompting authorities to set up an entrapment operation against the suspects.