2 Chinese nabbed for faking carnapping to claim insurance

Authorities arrested two Chinese men for staging a carnapping to claim insurance benefits.

According to Emil Sumangil’s Monday report on “24 Oras,” a CCTV footage caught the supposed carnapping in Valenzuela City last week.

The Chinese owner of the sports utility vehicle (SUV) reported the incident through the 911 hotline.

He told the police that he parked the SUV in front of a subdivision gate, but it was gone when he returned.

Authorities recovered the missing vehicle in a repair shop in Caloocan.

Based on police investigation, the man caught supposedly stealing the SUV was the owner of the repair shop, who is also Chinese.

“Nakita po na may bumaba, lumapit sa sinasabing na carnap na sasakyan. Nung paglapit niya, nakita sa CCTV na umilaw yung sasakyan. In our theory, meron siyang remote kasi napagana niya yung ilaw. Ibigsabihin lock or unlock, iilaw siya,” Valenzuela Police chief Police Colonel Joseph Talento said.

(We saw that the SUV lit up when he approached it. In our theory, he has a remote because the lights worked. It means lock or unlock, the lights turned on.)

Authorities also recovered some plate numbers at the repair shop, which were for another SUV of the same model and color that was involved in an accident in Bulacan last year.

The other SUV was also found totally wrecked in the repair shop.

Later on, the repair shop owner admitted that the carnapping was staged, with the vehicle owner as an accomplice.

The Valenzuela police said the suspects are facing multiple charges for perjury, illegal transfer of trade, insurance fraud, and misusing the 911 hotline.

“Ito palang paggamit nila ng 911, hindi pala tama yung inbentong kaso na hindi naman pala totoo kaya ito ay magsisilbing leksyon na huwag kayong gagawa ng kalokohang gagamiting ang 911,” Talento said.

(They used the 911 hotline in staging a carnapping. Let this be a lesson to not use the 911 hotline for nonsense.)

GMA Integrated News is reaching out to the suspects for comment. —Mariel Celine Serquiña/LDF, GMA Integrated News