Man nabbed for stealing chocolate for Valentine’s Day gift for mom

Mervin Dotullo, 20, was arrested after he stole a pack of chocolate worth P684.50 at a supermarket in Pasay. He said the chocolate would be his Valentine’s Day gift for his 55-year-old mother.
Photo by Mark Makalalad, Radyo Inquirer

A man’s wish to make the Valentine’s Day of his mother sweeter took a bitter turn after he was caught stealing a pack of chocolates in a supermarket in Pasay.

Plainclothes security guard Jorge Battung caught 20-year-old Mervin Dotullo placing a  pack of Toblerone, containing six 100-gram milk chocolate bars, inside his plastic bag at SM Hypermarket of SM Mall of Asia at 9:35 p.m. Tuesday.

A report from Pasay police found that Dotullo, a resident of Dasmariñas, Cavite province, did not pay for the chocolate worth P684.50 in the cashier when he left the mall.

When he was brought to Pasay police station, Dotullo said he only took the chocolates to make his 55-year-old mother Rosemarie happy this Valentine’s Day.

“I wanted to surprise my mother on Valentine’s because I have no money to buy a gift for her,” he explained in Filipino.

“I want to apologize to the owner for what I have done. Please forgive me,” he added. Detullo remained detained at Pasay police as of Wednesday afternoon.

Despite this, the mall management still pursued a case of theft against Dotullo, with a jail sentence of six months to four years.