As UAAP season heats up, police go after scalpers

MANILA, Philippines — As another University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) season again comes into full swing, so, too, has the Philippine National Police crackdown on scalpers, the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) made clear over the weekend.

In a statement released on Monday, the QCPD said it had arrested four scalpers — the longtime bogeymen of sports and entertainment — the day before at Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.

The suspects — Arland Yanga, 26; Arjan Acuzar, 20; Roland Bertolano, 20; and Youhey Negrilio, 26 — were selling overpriced tickets to the blockbuster men’s basketball game between De La Salle and Ateneo de Manila universities.

Operatives of the QCPD District Special Operations Unit stationed themselves in the vicinity of the coliseum around 3:30 p.m., pretending to be ticket buyers after receiving reports of “rampant scalping activity” in the area.

Scalping is illegal under Quezon City Ordinance No. SP-493, S-97, which defines the act as the “unlawful selling or buying of admission tickets outside the authorized official booth, outlet or place designated for the purpose.”

“We will act on any reports made to us, especially for the sake of avid sports fans … so they won’t be taken advantage of …,” said Police Brig. Gen. Joselito Esquivel Jr., the QCPD chief.