Thief Inside Buddhist Temple Caught On CCTV

With the start of the Christmas season, the Philippine National Police (PNP) expects a rise in the number of crimes against property.

PNP spokesperson Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz said syndicates take advantage of an increase in the volume of people in crowded places like malls and restaurants.

People also have more shopping money with them during "-ber" months, according to police.

Just last week, a thief struck at the Ocean Sky Monastery in San Juan.

The thief took cellphone units and wallets of students while they were in meditation class.

Based on footage of a closed circuit television (CCTV) camera in the Buddhist temple, a woman aged 20 to 25 years old was seen rummaging through cabinets and lockers where students left their bags while they were meditating in a separate room.

The suspect pretended to be one of the students involved in the meditation class and registered under an alias.

After surveying the different floors, she stayed for 5 minutes getting her loot from the lockers on the third floor.

She was later shown on the CCTV footage hurriedly leaving the room.

Police Officer 3 Marcelo Marinas said his investigation revealed that the temple had been under surveillance by a syndicate.

"Pag ganitong Christmas season kasi, walang sinasanto ang mga sindikato, kaya pati yung monasteryo hindi pinatawad," Marinas said.

He admitted that this was the first time they handled a case wherein a monastery was victimized by a thief.

San Juan police have sent a photo of the suspect to other law enforcement