The Philippine police are on the hunt for a trio of thieves who tunnelled into a mall and made off with 41 million pesos (S$976,000) worth of jewellery and cash, Philippine media reported.
The incident took place on Dec 31, 2023, in Gaisano Mall in Ozamiz City, some 783km from Manila, according to online news site Rappler.
Police officials said the thieves started a tunnel in a carnival inside a private compound beside the mall and dug a hole into a drainage canal which led to a food court in the mall, as reported in ABS-CBN.
When the trio entered the mall, they forcibly opened a MetroBank automated teller machine and stole 80,000 pesos in cash.
Next, they grabbed about 41 million pesos in jewellery and cash from vaults and glass showcases of GKC Jewellery and Oro Italia Fine Jewellery before fleeing the scene.
The robbery was discovered by a mall employee at 11am on Jan 1, ABS-CBN reported.
While the thieves have yet to be identified and arrested, the police have arrested a carnival worker, April John Permanhil, who they suspect assisted the trio on New Year’s Eve.
