Manila Police District operatives have arrested a man who allegedly stole from Grab drivers after winning their trust.
Police said the victims identified the suspect as Romeo Francisco, who used the same modus operandi on all of them. He was arrested on Doroteo Jose Street in Manila, seemingly poised to victimize another driver.
Francisco would ask to be driven to Las Piñas City, talk to them to win their trust, borrow their smartphones, and go to a gadget repair shop that would turn out to be non-existent, police said.
“He’s great at sweet-talking drivers, so they lose their smartphones,” said Police Inspector Yolando Espina, deputy commander of the Alvarez Police Community Precinct.
One victim, identified as Junar Albong, told police the suspect had hypnotized him, because he just followed whatever Francisco told him.
CCTV footage from Barangay 315 in Santa Cruz, Manila showed Francisco in different streets at different times, wearing different clothes
In all three videos, he appeared to be walking briskly, as though getting away from someone.
Another victim, Edison Gobrin, told police he wrote about his experience on Facebook and learned of about four other people who had a similar experience.
Nine Grab drivers have so far filed complaints against Francisco, who had admitted to the crime, saying he committed it because he needed medicine for his diabetes.
He claimed to have victimized around 20 people.
Francisco is facing charges of swindling and estafa, police said.
