Police link termite gang to Calinog pawnshop heist

By Jennifer P. Rendon

Police confirmed that the so-called “termite gang” was behind the April 27 robbery at C. Bayate Pawnshop and Jewelry Store in Calinog, Iloilo.

Maj. Myles Dieron, Calinog police chief, said investigators identified four suspects through closed-circuit television footage taken before the robbery.

The four suspects were seen near the pawnshop on several occasions leading up to the heist.

Upon verification, police found that the four suspects were allegedly involved in similar robbery incidents in Luzon.

One of them was also among the five suspects allegedly involved in another pawnshop robbery on Dec. 17, 2025, in Pavia, Iloilo.

Dieron said police also gathered evidence showing the suspects handing over tools used to forcibly enter the pawnshop.

2. Bayate Pawnshop and Jewelry Store lost about PHP 2.9 million during the robbery.

On the day of the incident, the Iloilo Police Provincial Office created a special investigation team to investigate the case.

The robbery was discovered around 8 a.m. April 27 when a teller reported for work.

The teller, identified only as 36-year-old Josie, found a large hole in the pawnshop’s floor.

She then saw that items inside the store were in disarray.

She also discovered that the room where cash and valuables were kept had been entered.

The pawnshop is located at the Calinog public market.

Police said the suspects likely passed through a drainage sewer by the river and made their way to the market by crawling about 350 meters.

Dieron said the store had no CCTV cameras.