Bogus lawyer nabbed for extort try

A man posing as a lawyer was arrested in an entrapment operation launched Tuesday by the Manila Police District (MPD) after he tried to extort money from residents of a compound in Tondo, Manila.

The suspect, identified as Robert Consultado Cinco alias “Atty. Robert Coa Cinco,” 46, resident of Malabon, is now detained at the MPD-District Integrated Jail and will be facing robbery extortion, syndicated estafa, falsification of public documents, and usurpation of authority and use of aliases.

The charges stemmed from the complaints of Ricardo Obrado, Jr. and Gay Marjorie Obrado.

The two said that last Jan. 5, some 40 heavily armed men headed by Cinco forcibly entered their compound located at Slip O, IPB Road, Gate 14, Area D Parola Compound.

One of the men asked residents to vacate the area or “something bad will happen to them” as a portion of the land was already pawned to them.

Cinco reportedly demanded that residents pay him ₱50 million so they

won’t be ejected, but residents said they can only afford ₱5 million.

An entrapment operation was launched against the suspects on Jan. 23 inside a fastfood chain where the transaction took place.

When the complainant handed the money around 4:20 p.m., police officers arrested the suspect and seized the marked money and different identification cards, documents, and certificate of title. (Jaimie Rose R. Aberia)