OFW claims losing P4.1 M in cash, jewelries to robbers

By Jennifer P. Rendon  

An overseas Filipino worker (OFW) claimed to have lost millions of pesos in cash and jewelleries stashed inside her home in Pavia, Iloilo.

Yenie Bakial, 41, claimed she found her house at Deca Homes, Phase 3 in Barangay Balabag in disarray when she arrived afternoon of Jan. 20, 2020.

It wasn’t long before Bakial learned that her attaché case containing around P4 million cash and P100,000 worth of jewelries was already missing from its   hiding spot under the double deck bed.

Police Major Jojo Tabaloc, Pavia police chief, said they were only informed of the robbery around 6:45 p.m. Monday.

Tabaloc said the robber passed through the main door of the house.

“Lapit lang ang front door sa window sang balay. The doorknob was opened because it was accessed through the window,” he said.

The robber/s then destroyed the doorknob of Bakial’s room and took away her valuables.

The incident was first labeled as “alleged robbery incident” when first reported to the police.

On Tuesday, Tabaloc asked Bakial to present documents like remittance slips to prove that she had P4 million cash.

“She was indeed robbed but we couldn’t confirm the amount,” he said.

It was gathered that the Bakial couple worked in Qatar. She went home more than a year ago and engaged in a lending business.

The victim occupied a housing unit at Deca together with her five children.

Adjacent to her unit was another house occupied by her mother and two siblings that could be accessed through a connecting door.

Her mother and one sibling are currently in Manila while the other sibling was at work when the burglary happened.

Bakial’s husband also works in Qatar as an architect.

Bakial claimed she chose to keep the cash at home instead of depositing it in the bank after she fell victim to unauthorized withdrawal.

Meanwhile, Police Lieutenant Loen Cachila of the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) said the suspect only destroyed the doorknobs of the two rooms.

It appears that the robber scaled the gate in gaining entry to the property.

Tabaloc said they already have a footage from a closed-circuit television (CCTV) showing that a motorcycle-riding man might have been responsible for the burglary.

Bakial was arrested Oct. 8, 2018 in New Washington, Aklan for illegal recruitment.

She was charged for violating Republic Act 8042 (Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995) docketed as Criminal Case Numbers 11-286648-49 and 10260 on January 31, 2012.

Tabaloc said it is possible that Bakial kept a big amount of cash because of her legal woes.

Police have yet to determine if Bakial’s case was related to other robberies that targeted the homes of OFWs.

Last January 14, some P192,000 worth of jewelry and electronic gadgets were taken from P192,000 from a house in Barangay Salacay, Cabatuan, Iloilo.