College prof nabbed for extortion

Agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Wednesday evening apprehended in an entrapment operation a 33-year-old college professor for allegedly extorting money from at least two of his students and for punching them.

The NBI’s counter intelligence division is set to file charges of robbery-extortion and physical injury against 33-year-old Rudy Mortera, an engineer and professor at Malayan Colleges (previously known as Mapua Institute of Technology) before the Manila City Prosecutor’s Office.

Cited as complainants in the case were Malayan Colleges students Rolando de Matta Jr. and Arthur Contreras, both 23 years old. De Matta and Contreras are fourth and third year mechanical engineering students, respectively.

De Matta told case officer Special Investigator Larry Autajay that Mortera is their professor in a minor subject, electronics and laboratory and lectures. He has been teaching at Malayan Colleges for at least 11 years.

According to De Matta, Mortera has been allegedly asking him for favors since Jan. 11. He was allegedly told to buy him food, refill a cartridge for his computer’s printer that cost him P400, and develop 80 pictures from his digital camera’s memory card that cost more than P1,600.

Contreras, on the other hand, said Mortera treated him as his "driver" and reportedly asked him to bring him to and from Pampanga province.

"I have a car and this incident happened for about four times, wherein I had to shoulder P800 for gas in every trip and P300 as toll fee," he told investigators.

Mortera had also reportedly demanded that they each give P5,000 in exchange for a passing grade.

Contreras and De Matta said they tolerated the abuse until Feb. 20 when Mortera started punching them in the body.

Mortera reportedly acquired a new cellular phone, a Nokia N-70, and rumors circulated around the campus that he was able to purchase a pricey mobile phone because he asked money from one of his students.

Mortera suspected De Matta and Contreras of spreading the rumor. During an examination on Feb. 22, the professor allegedly asked them to raise their left arm and he hit them in the side of their bodies. He then allegedly punched the other side.

Mortera allegedly punched De Matta’s left arm around 10 times and ignored the victim’s plea to stop.

They then decided to solicit the help of the NBI the following day and asked a fellow classmate to help them to arrange a meeting with an agent.

NBI agents then arranged a Feb. 28 sting operation in which the students would supposedly hand Mortera the money outside the school campus.