Basketball court theft: Man nabbed for stealing players' phones, cash in Cavite
CAVITE – Authorities arrested a man for allegedly stealing the personal belongings of athletes in a basketball court in General Trias City on Sunday, August 6.
The Cavite Police Provincial Office identified the suspect as Nick A. De Guzman, 48 years old.
Initial investigation showed that five victims kept their personal belongings in one bag before playing in a warm-up game. A few moments later, one of the victims returned to the courtside to get his face towel inside the bag only to find it missing.
The Barangay Peacekeeping Action Team (BPAT) of Barangay Pinagtipunan reviewed the CCTV footage and saw the suspect carting away the bag that contained six cellphones and cash amounting to P3,200.
De Guzman, however, returned to the basketball court, where he was positively identified. The BPAT personnel brought him to the barangay hall where he later admitted to selling the victims' cell phones.
Authorities conducted a follow-up operation but were only able to recover five of the six stolen cell phones. They also found the shoe bag in a vacant lot containing the empty wallets, ID cards, perfume, and sandals.
De Guzman is now under the custody of General Trias City Police Station and is facing theft charges.
