0 Calungsod chapel in SRP looted

The newly-built San Pedro Calungsod Chapel in the South Road Properties (SRP) was looted.

Acting Cebu City Police Office chief, Senior Supt. Mariano Natu-el Jr. said robbers took away P100,000 cash and an undetermined amount of bank checks from a drawer in the living quarter of nuns and other workers serving the religious facility.

The robbery was discovered last Sunday morning, he said.

Police investigators found the doors leading to the living quarter destroyed.

Inspector William Alicaba, Theft and Robbery Section chief, said that they will invite the two guards, a nun, the chapel secretary and others who have access to the basement leading to the living quarter to shed light on the robbery.

Police investigators are not discounting possibility of inside job in the robbery.

The money came from proceeds of baptism and weddings held at the chapel last week and was supposed to be deposited to the bank yesterday.

The nun’s quarters was located at the basement of the chapel in which one of the rooms also serves as an office where a plastic drawer containing the money was placed.

“There was no forced entry in the first door, but the door knob in the second door was destroyed, and the drawer pried open,” Natuel said.

The chapel was donated by the family of Henry Sy, owner of the SM group of companies that own the country’s biggest chain of malls.

It was formally opened in Nov. 29, 2012, a day before the Calungsod National Thankgiving Mass was held in the templete in a vacant SRP nearby.

The Calungsod chapel is located inside SM Seaside Complex that is still under construction.

Chito O. Aragon, Correspondent
Cebu Daily News

0 Calungsod chapel burglarized

The San Pedro Calungsod Chapel lost P100,000 and an undetermined amount of bank checks to burglars Sunday dawn.

Chapel employees discovered the burglary at 10 a.m. Sunday and reported the incident to the Mambaling Police Station.

Margarita Mateo, chapel’s secretary, told the police the drawer containing the wedding and baptism collection of the chapel amounting to P100,000 were missing last Sunday morning.

Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) Acting Director Mariano Natuel Jr. said the burglar destroyed two doors in the chapel basement.

He said the first door, whose lock was destroyed, leads to the quarters, where the priest and nuns usually sleep.

“Kaning first door sa basement, inig abli nimo, daghan ang door para sa quarters. Then ang kawatan ni-destroy sa usa sa mga doors sa quarters which lead to where the drawer is,” explained Natuel.

He said no one was sleeping on the quarters and only the guard on duty on the basement was around.

A key is needed to open the drawer. Natuel said there were no signs that the drawer was forcibly opened, which means that the burglar has the key of the drawer.

The first level of the drawer is where the collection, worth P100,000, was placed, while the second level contained coins and P20 bills.

Natuel said the burglar only took the P100,000 and left the coins and bills with small denominations.

“Kani nga drawer usa ra ang yawe kinahanglan para maabli tanan (This drawer only has one key),” said Natuel.

Theft and Robbery Section Chief Insp. William Alicaba said there were only two employees who have the copies of the keys. He said they are still gathering for information from the two security guards on-duty, two nuns who have the keys and the chapel’s secretary.

He said the guards on duty from 12 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. will be called as they were both on-duty from the time the money might have been stolen until the time it was discovered missing.

“We cannot comment yet if it was an inside job. We need to check first on the details,” said Alicaba in an interview with the media yesterday.

The St, Pedro Calungsd Chapel was built by SM Prime Holdings Inc. and is located within the 30-hectare SM Seaside Complex at the South Road Properties (SRP).

By Bernadette A. Parco and Jill B. Tatoy
SunStar Ceb