ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider NCRPO: Palestinian tagged in series of theft, estafa nabbed in Mandaluyong City

NCRPO: Palestinian tagged in series of theft, estafa nabbed in Mandaluyong City

Published Feb 7, 2026 03:28 pm
Police arrested a Palestinian tagged as responsible in the series of robbery and scamming modus targeting hotels, business establishments and ride-hailing services during an operation in Mandaluyong City.
Maj. Gen. Anthony A. Aberin, director of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO), said the operation that led to the arrest of the 36-year old Palestinian stemmed from the complaint of an occupant of a budget hotel in Highway Hills in Mandaluyong City in Feb. 6.
The suspect allegedly took P5,000 from the victim inside the hotel. He was arrested when the policemen heard the call for assistance of the victim while passing the area.
Following the arrest, Aberin said a Transport Network Vehicle Service (TNVS) driver filed a complaint against the suspect whom he accused of booking a ride without paying from Ermita, Manila to Mandaluyong City.
The suspect allegedly deceived the driver into accepting online payment but failed and refused to pay the agreed fare despite waiting for more than one hour, causing undue vexation and inconvenience.
“This arrest underscores the NCRPO’s sustained efforts to track down offenders and protect the public from predatory criminal activities. We assure the public that all offenders, regardless of nationality, will be held accountable through lawful and evidence-based police operations, with full respect for due process,” said Aberin.
A background investigation revealed that the suspect arrived in the Philippines in December 2019 and has been the subject of police tracing efforts since 2023 due to his involvement in several criminal incidents.
The suspect was also arrested in October last year in Quezon City for refusing to pay a taxi driver.
He was also linked to a theft incident on Jan. 14 in Malate, Manila, involving the unlawful entry into a condominium unit and the taking of several personal items, including a Nikon D5500 DSLR camera, a Sony digital video camera, a Canon digital camera, a baseball cap, a hooded jacket, and a pair of Crocs slippers.
Police are also investigating reports that the suspect had been involved in similar cases in Ermita, Manila since 2021.
On Jan. 26, he was also accused of taking two cellular phones, one iPad, and cash tips amounting to approximately ₱50,000 from a mall in Taguig City.
Police said the suspect's usual modus involved checking in at hostels and lodging establishments under the pretext of settling payment upon check-out, only to later steal from guests and establishments.
Aberin said the suspect is currently under police custody, and pertinent documents are being prepared for the filing of appropriate criminal complaints through inquest proceedings before the Office of the City Prosecutor of Mandaluyong City for violations of Theft (Article 308 in relation to Article 309, Revised Penal Code), Resistance to a Person in Authority (Article 151, RPC), Unjust Vexation (Article 287, RPC), and possession of a bladed weapon.
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.