Shopwise in Antipolo robbed

Pretending to be inspecting the three duty security guards, six heavily armed men robbed yesterday of an undetermined amount of cash the Shopwise shopping center in Antipolo City.

Antipolo City police chief Superintendent Danilo Macerin is eyeing the “inside job” angle as the three security guards reported the incident some 30 minutes after the robbers left.

“We are not discounting the possibility of an inside job because there are three mobile cars that take turns in patrolling the area,” said Macerin, adding that there is also a 24-hour checkpoint near the shopping center.

The Antipolo City police chief said the local police could have conducted a dragnet operation to intercept the suspects had the incident been reported the soonest possible time.

Initial reports showed that the suspects arrived at the shopping center located along M.L. Quezon Avenue on board a red Toyota Innova and a white Anfra Wagon at about 2:30 a.m. yesterday.

Brandishing high-powered firearms, the suspects identified themselves as inspectors from the security agency employing security guards Frederick Oquinena, Roger Ferrer and Sulpicio Mosende.

“They asked the three unsuspecting security guards posted in front the main gate to accompany them inside to inspect the shopping center,” Macerin told reporters.

However, while they were already inside the store, the suspects announced the heist at gunpoint.

They disarmed the three security guards of their service firearms, hogtied and ordered them to lie face down the floor.

Two of the suspects then barged into the treasury office, forcibly opened the vault and emptied it of cash.

The suspects also grabbed two colored television sets – a 32-inch and 14-inch LCD – before fleeing toward an unknown direction.

The three security guards told Macerin that they got no chance to check on the license plates of the suspects’ getaway vehicles.

Macerin said they will subject the three guards to tactical interrogation to determine whether they have a role in the robbery.

The establishment was still conducting an inventory of the cash taken by the six robbers.

The incident also prompted Macerin to recommend all business establishments in the city to arm themselves with closed-circuit televisions (CCTV) or surveillance cameras to help police in the fight against criminality. - Non Alquitran