A 22-YEAR-OLD Korean and her boyfriend were robbed at gunpoint yesterday morning by two men on a motorbike as the couple was about to cross a road in the Cebu Business Park in Cebu City.
The robbery occurred past 10 a.m. when the Koreans just got off a taxi and were heading for the Ayala Center.
The woman tried to resist after her shoulder bag was grabbed. One robber fired two shots in the air.
This alerted mall security guards who exchanged shots with the perpetrators, but the robbers drove off on a blue motorcycle with plate number 4476.
The victims were identified as Pyun Soo Hyung and her 23-year-boyfriend Kim Hyun, both natives of Seoul, Korea.
Hyung lost her Samsung digital camera and English books in her bag. Fortunately, her cash was tucked in her pocket.
Asked if they were still wiling to return to Cebu after the incident, the Koreans said: “Yes, of course, what happened was just a special experience for us.”
Both Koreans have been in Cebu since Jan. 9 and are enrolled at the Cebu Pacific International Language School. They are set to leave for Korea on Feb. 5.
The couple disembarked from a taxi on Luzon Avenue and were about to cross the street when the robbers on board a motorcycle blocked their way.
The Koreans told police that the backrider, who was holding an Ingram pistol, declared a holdup and grabbed Hyung’s bag.
Hyun tried to resist then pulled back when the robber fired two warning shots.
Armando Guera, a mall security guard, ran to the source of the gunfire and spotted the fleeing robbers.
Guera was able to fire a shot at the robbers but missed. The robbers also fired back before fleeing toward Archbishop Reyes Avenue.
Rey Dominador, security manager of Ayala Center, said the mall establishments remain secure.
He said security guards are strategically fielded around the mall to ensure the safety of customers and workers.
Dominador said a meeting will be conducted to strengthen the mall’s security measures to avoid a repeat of the incident. WITH CORRESPONDENT GABRIEL C. BONJOC