Ex-OFW lost P200T

IT WASN’T until he took his wife and son to South General Hospital in the City of Naga for a medical checkup last Saturday that overseas Filipino worker ( OFW) Eniel Ybañez learned that unauthorized withdrawals amounting to P200,000 have been made from his bank account.

The 47-year-old, who has been working in Qatar as a construction worker for two years, is the 19th person to claim having been victimized by automated teller machine (ATM) skimming fraud.

“It was hard-earned money we were saving for our little business here. I was still supposed to have a balance of more than P200,000 after withdrawing P4,000 last Nov. 11. I’d never have learned of this if not for the medical bills. These culprits need to be stopped,” he told reporters yesterday in Cebuano.

Upon learning of the unauthorized transaction, he immediately went to the Philippine National Bank to review his statement of account.

It was then did Ybañez discovered that more than P200,000 has been stolen from him.

The OFW immediately withdrew the remaining P78,000 and closed his account. He then went straight to the National Bureau of Investigation to report the matter.

To join the collective effort calling for the immediate apprehension of the culprits, Ybañez sought the assistance of Cebu City Councilor David Tumulak yesterday.

Meeting

Tumulak, who is chair of the City Council committee on public order and safety, called for a meeting last Monday with the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), Cebu Bankers Club (CBC) and at least 10 victims to discuss legal interventions.

It was learned during the meeting that roughly P3 million were stolen from 15 verified victims.

Tumulak discovered only last Nov. 9 that several unauthorized transactions had been made from his Landbank of the Philippines payroll since Sept.

Although he refused to disclose the total amount stolen, the latest unauthorized withdrawal was P50,000, on Nov. 9.

For legislative measures, the councilor re- quired the CBC to heighten their security and provide the CCPO with photos and videos of suspicious personalities caught on CCTV to help fast-track the apprehension on the suspects.

Tumulak, however, lamented that the CBC continued to refuse showing the captured photos and videos and confiscated skimming devices.

Process

The club representatives explained that a process must be followed before any footage is released to authorities, he said.

“I’m warning the banks that I’m writing a letter to the Office of the President if they continue this. I’ll also file a case against the banks for violating the specifications of the city’s CCTV Ordinance. I also want them to declare the taxes they’ve paid the City Government, if not, we’ll go after them. Some banks are only declaring the minimum amount, which also violates the Tax Ordinance,” Tumulak said.

Mayor Tomas Osmeña, for his part, reminded the public to be extra vigilant, saying the involvement of foreigners in the crime is alarming.