A Basag Kotse victim tells his story to raise awareness so others will not become next victims

A reader emailed us recently after he decided to finally share his Basag Kotse story in Alabang to let others know and also to serve as a lesson so that it will not be repeated in the future.

Please read his story below:

Dear Alabang Bulletin,

Good morning, I am emailing you guys because I’ve read and been tagged recently about your Basag Kotse stories after I have had a Basag Kotse incident in Alabang Town Center just this July 31, 2017. My Decathlon colleagues have noticed that there is a surge of Basag Kotse incidents in the month of August and September and I am upset that the perpetrators are still on-the-loose and robbing others. There is a false-sense of security in Alabang, and I think the perpetrators of these robberies are using that as an advantage.

Last July 31, I parked my Dad’s Prado around 9PM (right after Alabang Town Center just closed) underneath the tree, in clear sight of a flood light emitting from Gilligans restaurant, and right in front of the roundabout valet area across the Makati Supermarket and Jamba Juice area. It was my Mom’s birthday dinner and I was late driving in from work, and I didn’t think twice about safekeeping my laptop bag; I’ve left my items inside the car several times because I know the car had an alarm, and well, a false-sense of security due to the way it feels — a solid, vaulted car. I parked conveniently right beside a red car on my left with a passenger who was just standing or alighting with the door open, and another dark car that parked right beside me just a few minutes after I did.

Within an hour, I lost my laptop, bag, and basically all soft-copy documents worth two years of work. Ever had a feeling of having lost your soul? It happens during these special kind of moments wherein your embodiment of creativity, and time spent on workload, has been wiped clean right when you realize a crowd of people has gathered at your car, and with your Mom screaming bloody murder in the parking lot. It was her birthday, after all.

We discovered the thieves went through a passenger window behind the front passenger seat. It boggles me because they did not break the window where the laptop bag was located. I assume the thief didn’t want to get cut, or had delicate skin.

The dark car that parked beside me also had their car broken in, even though their car was heavily tinted. The owners of that dark car told me that no car alarm sounded for both theirs and mine. What I find disturbing is that I have a hunch that the people who parked right beside me in the red car were the ones who were also in cahoots with the robbers, whom I assumed were observing from another vehicle due to the nature of the way they were looking around. The police inspector said it’s why security guards do not entertain those staying in their vehicles in parking lots due to a link with car robberies. Also, I was suspicious of the tambay kids hanging about in the area (whom I assumed were also in cahoots with spies), while the police inspector was suspicious of the security personnel patrolling the area; the security personnel change guard around 9PM. The Alabang Town Center CCTV proved useless because it did not capture anything — it rotates left and right, and did not catch the moment I was robbed. All I have is a police report to take home.

Moving forward, I hope there is tighter security surveillance from the mall operators, as well as better due-diligence for all who have a false sense of security, be it a car, in a paid-parking area, or in an area where there are roaming security personnel.

Here are the photos: the broken windows, the location of my parked car in front of the roundabout, a selfie at the scene of the crime, and the police report.

By the way, I did not share my story on Facebook because I thought it would be useless, but I feel it’s time to share it now because I didn’t do my part in informing others to remain vigilant here in Alabang. I hope by emailing you, I have done my part to help raise awareness.

Nowadays, and as evident in his story, no car has unbreakable windows.

If thieves want what is inside, then they will do whatever they can to get inside your cars.

Thank you Paolo for sharing your story and we hope many vehicle owners are extra cautious now and that all establishments protect their customers by investing in CCTV’s and security guards.