Police looking for ‘cohort’ in robbery of Sinulog office funds

The actions of security guard Joselyndo Jabagat looked suspicious.

But police investigators are also looking for a “John Doe,” jargon for an unidentified perpetrator, in the P1.6-million robbery of the Sinulog Foundation funds taken from a locked vault.

Tell-tale signs of someone’s well-informed and well-planned moves in the burglary in the administration office of the Cebu City Sports Center in the early morning hours after the Jan. 15 Sinulog grand parade have investigators wondering who could be the “mastermind” of the heist.

The burglar tried to “mislead” law enforcers, for example, by leaving behind two bolt cutters in the office.

Senior Supt. Melvn Buenafe, Cebu City police chief, said these were not the tools used to break the vault.

He said a simple iron crow bar was probably used to force open the door of the steel cabinet vault. The metal bar was recovered by the police.

Someone familiar with the office layout, staff movements and the days-old information that P880,500 cash would be kept over the weekend and another P757,000 for a single night took advantage of post-Sinulog revelry, fatigue and lax security.

It was the first time the Sinulog Foundation had been robbed, said city officials earlier. Keeping that large an amount of cash in the vault, instead of depositing it in a bank, was also unprecedented.

The bulk of the missing money was cash intended for talent fees and honoraria of dancers who performed during the Sinulog grand finale, and financial aid for dance contingents.

It also included P11,405 in ticket sales of the center and the Mass collections in the amount of P11,441 intended as donations for Typhoon Sendong victims.

The total amount of P1,6888,831.10 was declared as stolen from the vault of the Cebu City Sports Center administration office. The amount includes the P9,000 value for a Sony camera.

In the police complaint with the Cebu City Prosecutors, Jabagat and an unnamed “cohort” were charged with qualified theft.

Affidavits of two utility workers describe unusual goings-on that evening and the wee hours after.

Rosita Velasco, 40, a crew member of the foundation, said she was standing near the administration office of the sports center at about 11 p.m. Sunday, when Jabagat approached her and asked for the key of the office of the Sinulog Foundation.

“I was surprised because for years, it was the first time that Joselyndo asked for the key,” she said.

“I did not give it to him because I was instructed not to give the key to the guard. Instead, I gave it to John Michael Pepito, a Sinulog Foundation staff member.”

But moments later, she said she took back the key from Pepito after “remembering that I was the one entrusted with the key.”

She said she returned at 7 a.m. to clean the office, as part of her routine, when she noticed that things were in disarray. She then called the guards.

Manuel Cueva, 32, a utility worker detailed in the sports center “bodega,” said in his affidavit that he and co-workers were busing retrieving chairs and tables used in the command center located in the streets starting 9 p.m. to stack them in the bodega.

They finished around 12:30 a.m. of Monday, Jan. 16, he said, and had a drinking spree at the employees quarters nearby.

Jabagat, who was on duty, “would join us for a while and take a shot (of alcohol), then walk away.”

At about 2:50 a.m., said the worker, Jabagat returned and drank a shot.

“At this instance, I noticed a male person go inside the administration office of the Cebu City Sports Center,” said the worker.

When he told Jabagat about it, the guard told him “Nipanso ra na siya” (He’s just punching in his time card) and stayed on with the group.

Five minutes later, recalled the utility worker, “an unidentified male person came out of the administration office carrying something.”

When he told Jabagat, the guard “did not react or make a move to hold or verify the person (identity).”

A stay-in guard from GDS Security Agency, the same agency which employs Jabagat, also issued an affidavit.

John Eric Carcedo, 32, who is detailed in the parking area of the sports center, said he went to the administration office to punch in his daily time record at 3:37 a.m.

He said he noticed the office was open and he didn’t see Jabagat, who was the guard on duty there.

“I did not find him at his post,” said Carcedo.

Jabagat, who is still in police custody, said he fell asleep at his post and denied any hand in the robbery.

His family in barangay Carreta, Cebu City, has suffered from the scandal.

His wife Marilyn had to take a leave of absence from her job in a canteen of a call center in Asiatown IT Park to look for a lawyer to defend him.

As of yesterday, she had yet to consult one.

The couple has two children. Marilyn said their elder daughter, aged 8, understands what happened. But what broke her heart was the reaction of her 4-year-old girl.

When Jabagat was shown on television after his arrest, the little girl was confused.

“Ingon siya artista na iyang papa (She said her father was a celebrity),” Marilyn said.

Marilyn said she wanted to cry but has to remain strong in this crisis facing the family.

She said Joselyndo was a good husband and provider, and would turn over P1,800 of his pay every 15th and 30th of the month.

Even if they earned small salaries, it was enough to feed them three times a day, she said.

“Simple ra man kaayo mi. Wa man mi mangandoy og sobra pa,” she said. (We are simple people. We don’t dream of having too much.)

Marilyn said her spouse had no vices and never engaged in illegal activities to support his family.

Yesterday, lie-detector tests continued with Sinulog Foundation Inc. executive director Ricky Ballesteros

“It’s okay, I’m ready for the questions,” he said before entering the room.

He and Cebu City Sports Commission Executive Director Ildebrando Velasquez also took the polygraph exam in the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 7 office.

Police have requested tests for security guards Jabagat and Carcedo, utility crew member Manuel Quemada, maintenance worker Rosita Velasco and John Michael Pepito, a foundation worker.

Polygraph test results are not admissible as evidence in court but are useful for investigation.

The NBI earlier said they would submit the results to the police and let them decide whether to make them public.  With reports of Jhunnex Napallacan, Chito Aragon and Ador Mayol