- Police file charges vs group behind ₱1.8-M gadget shop heist
THE DAVAO City Police Office (DCPO) filed robbery charges on Wednesday against at least six individuals linked to a million-peso gadget shop heist in Toril District last week.
Speaking at the Davao Peace and Security press briefing at the Royal Mandaya Hotel on Wednesday, July 1, DCPO spokesperson PMAJ Ma. Teresita Gaspan confirmed that while the investigation is ongoing, prosecutors are already reviewing the initial complaints.
“We have identified [the suspects] based on CCTV footage, and a case was filed earlier today against five individuals while our team continues its case build-up,” Gaspan told reporters.
“6, identified one John Doe and 1 Jane Doe,” she said.
Gaspan revealed that the suspects belong to an organized, transient crime syndicate operating in multiple provinces.
“They have a similar modus operandi to a robbery incident in Tagum. They are not from Davao City,” she said, adding that several members of the group already carry outstanding warrants for similar crimes in other regions.
“The documents are now with the Prosecutor’s Office. Hopefully, a warrant of arrest will be issued soon, so we can apprehend the suspects,” Gaspan added.
The 3 a.m. heist
The charges stemmed from an early-morning break-in on June 24 at RAD Gadgets, a prominent store in Toril. The criminals carted away 101 iPhones—consisting of 16 brand-new and 85 secondhand units—along with ₱24,500 in cash from the register.
The total value of the stolen merchandise and cash stands at a staggering ₱1,822,919.
According to initial police investigations, the store owner discovered the burglary around 9:40 a.m. after reviewing the establishment’s closed-circuit television (CCTV) feed.
The owner immediately alerted a store representative, identified only as John, who rushed to the scene. Upon arrival, John discovered that two heavy-duty padlocks securing the shop’s roll-up door had been cleanly sliced through.
A forensic review of the store’s security footage unmasked the precision of the operation. At around 3:13 a.m., three men armed with a heavy bolt cutter breached the entrance while a fourth stood watch outside as a lookout.
However, expanded tracking by Toril Police Station (PS8) personnel, led by commander PMAJ Sheryl Bautista, revealed an even larger network. Investigators discovered that a total of eight suspects—six males and two females—orchestrated the heist.
The group was captured on camera fleeing the scene along MacArthur Highway toward the national highway aboard a white Toyota Hiace Grandia getaway van bearing a tampered license plate (NB 788).
The Toril Police Station officially requested the assistance of the Davao City Forensic Unit XI to sweep the crime scene for latent fingerprints and digital evidence.
Massive follow-up operations, manhunts, and dragnet operations remain underway across key exit points in the region to intercept the getaway vehicle and capture the remaining members of the syndicate.
