Businessman arrested for false robbery claim

MANILA, Philippines — A businessman was arrested for falsely claiming that armed men barged into his office in Quezon City on Saturday and made off with at least P45 million in cash and valuables.

Bernard Chua, 40, will be charged with perjury before the city prosecutor’s office following his arrest by the Quezon City Police District (QCPD).

Chua initially reported that six unidentified men carrying long firearms barged into the BC Cars Trading and Auto Services office in Project 8 at around 4 a.m. on Saturday, according to the QCPD’s Project 6 station.

The businessman claimed that the robbers took P22.5 million in cash, five watches valued at P12.8 million, diamonds worth P10 million, a Glock 19 9mm pistol worth P50,000, a Glock 17 9mm pistol worth P50,000, a Rock Island revolver worth P20,000, a Bushmaster caliber-5.56 rifle worth P125,000, a Glock 43 9mm pistol worth P50,000 and a Sig Sauer P238 caliber-.380 pistol worth P48,000.

The robbers then fled the scene in a silver Lexus sport utility vehicle, a black Toyota Innova with plate number 16, a green Yamaha Aerox and a black Honda Click motorcycle, Chua said.

At around 5:30 a.m. on the same day, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit (CIDU) initiated an investigation into the reported robbery.

However, the CIDU’s findings contradicted Chua’s claims, as security camera footage from the vicinity showed no record of the alleged incident.

Further inquiry revealed that Chua had reportedly coerced his employees to act as witnesses and provide false statements, the CIDU stated.