Police discover underground tunnel that thieves dug to rob pawn shops
Police discover underground tunnel that thieves dug to rob pawn shops
#police #crime #breakingnews
Police discovered an underground tunnel that thieves had dug to rob pawn shops in the Philippines.
The suspects carved out a hidden channel beneath a commercial area in Novaliches, Manila.
They reportedly accessed the sewer system through a narrow waterway some 100 metres from shops, working under the cover of night to avoid detection.
But their plans were thwarted when a security guard heard muffled drilling noises around midnight on April 22, despite there being no construction sites nearby.
Police immediately launched a probe and discovered the tunnel on May 3.
Footage shows Police Lieutenant Colonel Dave Anthony Capurcos, commander of the Novaliches Police Station 4, crawling through an underground pipe before finding an opening – just enough for a person to fit through – in the concrete.
He said: ‘We crawled around 6.8 metres from the end of the canal. It’s here. If we climb up, the pawn shops will be here.
‘The hole is really narrow. Only one person at a time can fit. And they even built a rest area where they can sit.’
Officers squeezed through the gap, and arrived at a cockroach-filled sewage area directly beneath the road next to the shops.
Police recovered various tools, including a portable grinder, cutting disc, hydraulic jacks, screwdrivers, pliers, and crowbars from the tunnel.
They said the suspects had almost managed to drill through the floor of one pawn shops, just a metre away from its vault.
Police Major Jennifer Gannaba, spokesman for the Quezon City Police Department, said: ‘If we look, they were able to dig extensively, so definitely they have been working for a long time. That tunnel needs to be closed.
‘It’s good that the security guard and the pawn shop owner immediately filed a report. We were able to discover the tunnel before any robbery could be committed.’
Staff said the attempted break-in was uncovered after a guard noticed suspicious activity seemingly coming from under the shop.
Cristina Servanez, area head of Magdalena Pawn Shop, said: ‘Our security guard noticed that the flooring here seemed warm. So that’s when he reported to the barangay chief and police.
‘The floor was drilled through, but it wasn’t fully breached. The guard managed to catch it in time.’
Authorities said they were investigating the identities of the suspects, believed to be members of the notorious ‘Termite Gang’.
The gang tunnels underground into banks or shops to steal valuables undetected. They typically work at night, drilling through floors or walls to bypass security systems and access vaults.
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