Pre-Chinese New Year gathering in Parañaque ends in robbery; Chinese national arrested
The arrested suspect (Photo from SPD)
A pre-Chinese New Year gathering turned into a robbery incident, resulting in the arrest of one suspect during an entrapment operation conducted by members of the Parañaque City Police Tambo Substation.
The Southern Police District (SPD) identified the arrested suspect as Xing, 37. His alleged accomplice, identified only as “Tie Zhu,” along with three other unidentified male Chinese nationals, remains at large.
The victims were identified as Joei, 49, a Filipino; Zhang, 38; and Qiao, 43, both Chinese nationals; and Jimmy, 30, a Malaysian national.
Police said Xing was arrested inside a condominium unit in Barangay Tambo at around 6:30 a.m. on Feb. 14.
Initial investigation revealed that the victims and several suspects had gathered for a traditional pre-Chinese New Year celebration inside a building on C. Santos Street in Barangay Tambo, Parañaque City, at around 10:30 p.m. on Feb. 13. During the gathering, the suspects allegedly declared a hold-up.
Authorities said the suspects used force and intimidation to seize the victims’ personal belongings, including mobile phones, luxury bags, and cash amounting to P280,000, before fleeing the area.
Police further said the suspects later contacted the victims and demanded P120,000 in exchange for the return of the stolen mobile phones. This prompted members of Tambo Police Substation 2 to conduct an entrapment operation, which led to Xing's arrest.
A follow-up operation is ongoing to apprehend “Tie Zhu” and the other suspects who managed to evade authorities.