Cops nab 7 minors for burglary in QC

A group of minors were arrested on Saturday, just hours after they broke into a house at a subdivision in Quezon City and took P250,000 worth of jewelry, gadgets and appliances.

The boys who were between the ages of 14 and 17 were caught after three of them tried to sell part of their loot, a 40-inch flat-screen TV, to a barangay watchman for only P2,000.

According to the police, five of the boys live at Barangay Bagong Silangan in Quezon City, while the remaining two were siblings from Antipolo City, Rizal. The older of the siblings who was 17 years old was considered the group leader.

Their victims, Benedict Cortez and his wife, Lilibeth, told the police that they were in Pangasinan when a neighbor informed them on Saturday morning that someone had broken into their house at Spring Valley Subdivision in Quezon City.

The couple hurried home, only to discover that the thieves had taken rings, watches, earrings and bracelets worth P90,000, in addition to perfumes, tablets, laptops, digital cameras and their flat-screen TV.

Suspects’ confession

Case investigator PO3 Jomar Pallado said the children admitted to authorities that around 3 a.m. on Saturday, they broke into the couple’s house by destroying the bracket holding the air-conditioning unit.

Pallado added that the minors also admitted that as they were raiding the house, they ate the victims’ food, including chocolates, raisins, cereals and canned goods. They then left through the front gate, taking their loot with them.

Unfortunately, the man they offered the flat-screen TV to turned out to be a village watchman, who became suspicious because of its cheap price.

“The two siblings were reportedly notorious for robbing houses in Quezon City and Antipolo,” Pallado said. He noted that it was not the first time that a house in the subdivision had been burglarized although it was the first time that the seven boys were arrested together.

The police said they were trying to determine if the group had been involved in other robberies.

The minors were turned over to the city’s Social Services Development Department although it was unclear if they would face charges because of their age.