A 42-year-old woman suspected to be a member of a group of swindlers was arrested by police in barangay Poblacion, Liloan town, northern Cebu.
Gemma Aurita of barangay Maslob, Danao City, was arrested inside a pawnshop where she was about to withdraw money sent by her victim, said police.
Police said the victim, a businesswoman, asked not to be named for security reasons.
The victim told police that her maid received a text message urging her to send P24,000. The helper was the one watching the victim’s direct selling store.
The victim said the househelper sent the cash last Dec. 30 without her knowledge.
The victim sought help from the police and coordinated with the pawnshop management.
To catch the suspect, the victim said they sent more money to her last Tuesday.
Aurita went to the pawnshop to claim the money past 11 a.m. unmindful that the victim and police were already there to arrest her.
Police said Aurita pretended to be a worker of a hotel and showed a company ID with her photo on it but with a different name.
Police said several receipts were recovered from the suspect.
Chief Insp. Richard M. Oliver, chief of the Liloan police, said they suspect that Aurita had cohorts but she refused to identify them.
Police said charges for estafa through falsification of documents will be filed against Aurita, who was detained at the Liloan police station.