Quezon City map
MANILA, Philippines — The Quezon City Police District (QCPD) announced on Friday that nine suspects were arrested for allegedly stealing Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company’s (PLDT) cable wires worth P105,935.
Officers from Police Station (PS) 15 chanced upon the suspects during their routine patrol, according to QCPD Director, Police Brigadier General Nicolas D Torre III.
“Report shows that at about 4:30 a.m. of December 8, 2022, while PS 15 personnel were conducting patrol along North Avenue near [Veterans Memorial Medical Center], Brgy. Vasra, Quezon City, they chanced upon the suspects helping each other in cutting and pulling said cable wires from the manhole thereat,” the QCPD said in a statement.
When the officers asked the suspects for their job order, they could not present any documents, failing to confirm that they were authorized PLDT personnel. The QCPD said that this lead to their “immediate arrest.”
Authorities confiscated five cuts of PLDT copper cable wire that reached 9.5 meters, which was worth P105,935.00. The suspects’ pick-up truck, along with two steel hacksaws, a chain block and a hammer was also taken.
The QCPD identified the suspects as follows: Honny Ford Abang (28 years old), Jesus Miguela (36 years old), James Pugal (33 years old), Alvin Quijano (26 years old), Jonas Benedict Isip (40 years old), Jomar Abinuman (21 years old), James Batulid (40 years old), Jonard Macua (43 years old), and Aldrian Vitti (25 years old).
According to the QCPD, they will be charged for Section 4 of Republic Act 10515 or the Anti-Cable Television and Cable Internet Tapping Act of 2013.
“Ang pag-aresto sa mga suspek ay patunay lamang na seryoso ang QCPD sa mandato nitong wakasan ang lahat ng uri ng kriminalidad sa ating lungsod. Makakaasa po kayo na patuloy pa naming paiigtingin ang pagbabantay sa mga lansangan para sa kapayapaan at seguridad ng ating mamamayan,” said Torre.
(The arrest of the suspects proves that the QCPD is serious in its mandate to end all sorts of criminality in the city. You can expect that we will continue to guard our streets for the peace and security of our people).