Barking dogs lead to burglar’s arrest

MANILA, Philippines — Following weeks of surveillance, it was the incessant barking of dogs that led to the arrest of a man suspected of robbing several houses in a posh San Juan City village — including two on the same street where the Mayor Francis Zamora lives.

Col. Jaime Santos, San Juan police chief, said they caught Jomari Aspra around 1 a.m. on Tuesday inside North Greenhills Subdivision, a wealthy enclave whose residents included the mayor and his father, Rep. Ronaldo Zamora.

According to Maj. Dennis David of the station’s investigation division, the complainants, Mark Tan and Cherry Cortez, were awakened by “the continuous barking of their dogs.”

They then saw the suspect fleeing their home on Kennedy Street and called security.

Police rushed to the scene and found the 23-year-old Aspra climbing the perimeter fence bisecting North Greenhills Subdivision and Ortigas Avenue, the same route he had allegedly taken several times to evade the gated village’s tight security.

In a press conference, Zamora said at least two residents — his neighbors on Van Buren Street — had formally reported that their houses were burglarized.

He estimated, however, that the suspect and potentially others had victimized eight to 10 homes since December.

Santos said that with Zamora’s endorsement, they had been able to patrol and surveil the subdivision in the weeks leading up to Christmas.

The police are normally barred from entering private communities, which have their own security.

Police said that Aspra, who was now detained at the San Juan City police station, was found with a .38-caliber revolver and would be charged with robbery and illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.

The suspect was previously detained in Quezon City on the same charges.