P2M ‘lost and found’ jewelry back to owner

Assorted jewelry worth about P2 million that was accidentally tossed out with the trash in Mandaue city, was finally returned to its owner yesterday.

This came seven months after scavengers found the jewelry pieces in a dumpsite in barangay Umapad, Mandaue City.

Carolyn Tan, daughter-in-law of the owner Vicente H. Tan, went with lawyer Inocencio Dela Cerna to the office of Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes yesterday to claim the jewelry.

Vicente was the lone claimant who came foward after a six-month notice to the public was run about the lost and found jewelry, said Jaime Calipayan, Mandaue City Hall executive secretary.

Vicente, a retired businessman of barangay Cabancalan, earlier said housekeepers who were clearing his bedroom of termite-ridden belongings had unknowingly thrown out a box containing the jewelry .

He filed an affidavit of claim and ownership and presented photos showing him and his wife wearing the gold bracelets and other jewelry.

The found items included a gold necklace, a gold ring with a jade stone, a class ring with the engraved name of Vicente H. Tan, a gold bracelet with diamond stones, and another gold bracelet.

Cash in the amount of P35, 500 was also turned over as remaining proceeds of one pawned gold bracelet.

There was “reasonable ground to believe that Tan is the owner” based on the absence of other claimants, the photos, and the fact that one ring had Tan’s name engraved on it, said Calipayan.

Calipayan said it was up to the owner if he would still give a reward to the scavengers since the items were not voluntarily turned over and the police had to intervene to recover the jewelry.

Calipayan said the Tan family had to pay a pawnship to redeem a bracelet, which caused the reward to be forfeited.

Word spread quickly last Jan. 12 about the lost-and-found jewelry in the Umapad dumpsite where scavengers openly celebrated. Some gave away cash to neighbors.

Police tracked down scavengers Rodrigo Corta, Ida Montecalvo and Antonio Cuizon, who said they found the jewelry mixed in a sack of garbage. /CORRESPONDENTS FE MARIE D. DUMABOC AND NORMAN V. MENDOZA