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A Japanese couple who were staying at a hotel in Paranaque City lost P1,200 and a passport after two armed men on a motorcycle robbed them last week, Paranaque City police confirmed on Monday.

In an interview with The Daily Manila Shimbun, Capt. Melvin Garcia, chief investigator of the Paranaque City Police, said the Japanese nationals who were staying at Kingsford Hotel reported the incident on October 31 and immediately flew back to Japan the next day.

“The suspects pretended to be Joyride riders and when they saw the couple walking in the area, they snatched their bag. That’s the scenario. The couple then reported the incident to the Kingsford Hotel, where it was recorded,” Garcia said.

“After that, they went to the police, and a police report was filed. The investigation is ongoing, but the victims were able to leave the country because of the police report,” he added.

He said that they had not recovered any lost items and could not file a case of robbery against one of the suspects they caught because only the victims were allowed to file complaints.

“We identified a suspect and have a lead, but even if we manage to arrest the suspect, we cannot file a robbery complaint because robbery charges should only filed by the victim. It’s not transferrable…except if the victim is dead,” he said.

According to Garcia, Kingsford Hotel was a new establishment in Paranaque so they were not able to set up a fixed post at that time but he assured the Japanese community that it would be resolved.

“What we can do is, first and foremost, advise them to be cautious since they’re from Japan and here in Metro Manila. Crimes like these happen in many places, and it’s beyond our control. It helps for them to research the area they’re going to, to stay informed,” Garcia said.

Garcia said they deployed mobile patrols, which consist of two or three police officers, and plainclothes officers in the area to prevent similar robbery incidents.

“ We also deploy plainclothes officers who blend in with the community, including among riders, since our challenge here involves suspects posing as (delivery or motor taxi) riders. They’re the ones who targeted this couple,” he said.

Meanwhile, another Paranaque police officer said a Japanese male student residing in McKinley, Taguig City reported that his bag containing a laptop was stolen last week.

He added that the victim only realized that it was lost when he arrived home.

The student was referred to the Taguig City Police since his area was not under their jurisdiction, the police officer said. Jaspearl Tan/DMS