QC police releases anti-carnapping video

To get the public's cooperation in the drive against carnapping, the Quezon City Police District (QCPD) released on Monday copies of video presentation on the modus operandi of carnapping syndicates. The 15-minute video presentation showed various modus operandi of the carnapping syndicates in the country that were used in the different incidents that happened in Quezon City, which used to bear the title of Carnapping Capital of the country. "It is not our intention to scare you with this video presentation. This is just to warn you so that you will not fall prey to carnapping syndicates," QCPD director Senior Superintendent Magtanggol Gatdula said in Filipino at the start of the presentation. Among the modus operandi shown are the following: 1) Suspects follow their targets, block them at an unpopulated place, and bring out their long firearms to scare off their victims; 2) Suspects attack parked vehicles even if the drivers or owners are aboard it; 3) Suspects await for their victims at their residences; 4) Suspects steal vehicles that are left unattended but the engines are still working (like when the driver or owner goes to an ATM or urinates); and, 5) Suspects get the attention of their targets by intentionally bumping them until they stop. The video said that in most cases, the drivers or owners are taken along by the suspects to farther places and dropped in remote areas so it would take them time to report the crime to police. It also pointed out that the suspects use screw drivers or blank keys to open unattended target vehicles. In order to avoid falling prey to the syndicate, the video advised the public to do the following: 1) Avoid parking in unpopulated areas; 2) Install safety gadgets to your vehicles; 3) If the car is parked, do not stay inside; 4) Avoid leaving the engine of your car open when you intend to stop for a while; 5) Make sure there are no suspicious people in the vicinity where you leave your vehicle. If there are any, report them to police right away; and, 6) Do not follow a single route every day so you will not leave a pattern to the suspects. "The PNP alone cannot solve this problem. The key is the cooperation and coordination of the public so we ask you to be alert always in your surroundings," Gatdula said. He said the PNP will continue to work against the carnappers, even if they include men in uniform. Gatdula said that based on statistics, carnapping syndicates concentrate now in Central Luzon. He said that with the distribution of the video to various police units in other parts of the country, the problem of carnapping will hopefully be reduced in the future. - GMANews.TV