AN ESTIMATED P80,000 worth of cash, office equipment and personal belongings were stolen from the Pharmacy Dean’s office in the morning of May 13, leaving a number of workers under police investigation.
SPO4 Jessie Oliveros of Manila Police District Station 4 said the stolen items included one laptop, cash amounting to P6,700 and personal belongings of clerks such as two digital cameras, a gold bracelet reportedly worth P40,000, a ring, and a bracelet of “no significant value.”
Oliveros said a slightly opened window in the conference room inside the Dean’s office may have served as the thief’s entrance.
“The window cannot be shut properly apparently because of the rust formations and lack of metal lubrication, providing almost two inches of open space,” Oliveros told the Varsitarian.
The thief probably entered the office by passing through Room 222 of the UST Main Building, three rooms away from the Dean’s office.
Construction workers renovating Room 222 were invited in a preliminary police investigation. Two clerks were also invited for questioning.
Strange motive
Oliveros said there were “uncanny” incidents that raised a number of questions.
If the entry point was the opened window in the conference room, then the thief should first cross Dean Priscilla Torres’ office to reach the front desk where some of the stolen items were kept. Torres had a smaller laptop on her table but it was not stolen.
Oliveros added that the stockroom, where newer model of laptops were stored, was open but not a single laptop was lost. However, the stockroom’s key got lost, according to Oliveros.
The Varsitarian sought Pharmacy’s side of the story, but Torres and her staff refused to comment as of press time.