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CEBU CITY, Philippines — A youth leader in Tuburan town, northern Cebu was arrested after being accused of stealing money from the mayor’s assistant on Friday, September 27.
The suspect was identified as Matthew John Barangan, 21, the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) chairperson of Barangay Bakyawan.
Police Major Glenn Hife, chief of the Tuburan Police Station, said they received a complaint from one of the executive assistants of Mayor Aljun Diamante on Friday morning.
The assistant, identified as Steve Salipot, reported that over P30,000 of cash stashed in one of his bags went missing.
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Upon reviewing surveillance cameras in the town hall, municipal employees immediately identified Barangan, said Hife.
The crime reportedly took place around 5 p.m. on Thursday, September 27, inside the office of the mayor’s assistants. At that time, only a few employees remained, including Salipot.
The suspect, Barangan, was there as a visitor.
When Salipot left, the suspect allegedly walked towards the bag placed on the table, and began rummaging throught its contents.
The next day, Friday, Salipot was surprised that most of the money stashed in the bag were gone, prompting him to call the police and ask assistance from the municipal hall’s security personnel to review the closed-circuit television cameras (CCTV).
Police then went to Barangan’s residence in Brgy. Bakyawan where he was arrested around 10 a.m. on Friday.
However, the police only recovered around P3,200 from the suspect.
“Nagasto na daw niya ang kwarta. Mao nang gamay nalang ang nahibilin,” Hife said.
(He had already spent the money. That is why only little of the stolen money was left.)
According to the police official, the suspect admitted that he was tempted to steal the money he found in Salipot’s bag due to personal and family problems.
Meanwhile, the victim will proceed on filing theft charges against the suspect.
Tuburan is a second-class municipality located 92 kilometers north of Cebu City.