By CESAR JOLITO III

Jewelry and cash valued at around P500,000 were stolen from a woman selling rice and other grains at the Cadiz City Public Market in Barangay Zone 3 on Thursday morning, March 12.

The victim was identified as 40-year-old alias “Jesellee,” a resident of Barangay Banquerohan’s Purok Bougainvillea in the city.

Cadiz police deputy chief, Police Lt. Daleen Grace Loreno, said two unidentified suspects posed as customers at the couple’s stall.

One female suspect paid P50 for coins to distract “Jesellee,” while her accomplice engaged the victim’s husband with another transaction.

Another suspect seized a bag containing the couple’s jewelry, which was stored in a cradle inside the store.

When the husband tried to stop the theft, the suspect fled with the items.

He managed to apprehend the 46-year-old female suspect, who admitted she came from Tondo, Manila, after being invited to Negros but claimed she did not know her accomplice or the group involved.

Loreno noted that the pair may belong to a group of professional thieves and that the couple may have been specifically targeted.

The apprehended suspect has been charged and is now in police custody.

The victims revealed that they often carry their jewelry with them, having previously experienced a similar burglary in their own home./CJ, WDJ