Following the robbery of a taxi driver in Baguio City by two male suspects, the Baguio City Police Office reminds drivers to have dash cameras installed in their vehicles.
BCPO Abanao Police Station commander Maj. Lee Alvin Alinao, in an interview with PTV-Cordillera, said taxi drivers and operators should make sure that their dashcams are working properly.
The incident, which happened at 3 a.m. of April 26 in front of the University of the Cordilleras gate 5, was caught in the dashcam of the taxi.
The suspects, wearing face masks and baseball caps, boarded along Marcos Highway and told the driver to bring them to the night market at Harrison Road.
But upon reaching the ill-lighted area along Harrison Road, the suspects announced a holdup where one of the suspects placed a knife around the victim’s neck.
It could be seen and heard from the footage of the dashcam the driver was pleading for the suspects to get his earnings for the day, but spare his life as he has a family to come home to.
In the police report, it stated the victim grabbed the suspect’s hand holding the knife to remove it from his neck. Taking his chance, he dashed out of the taxi and ran towards Burnham Park where he reported to the tourist police unit in the area.
Police personnel immediately conducted a search for the area which led to the arrest of the suspects who were found at Burnham Park.
The 17-year-old suspect was committed to the City Social Welfare and Development Office Bahay Pag-asa for being a minor, while the 19-year-old suspect was brought to the Baguio City Jail. They are facing a case of attempted robbery with violence.
The 33-year-old victim sustained lacerations in his neck and right wrist and was discharged from the hospital in stable condition.
Alinao said the incident is the first robbing incident for a taxi driver to be reported this year. He advised taxi drivers to take extra precaution when on duty especially on the wee hours of the morning. – Ofelia C. Empian
