Taxi driver arrested after speeding away with bag of OFW

By
Image title

Prado points at the suspect

Manila—A taxi driver was arrested in Rizal yesterday (July 19) after he sped away with the backpack of a newly-arrived overseas Filipino worker from Oman who refused to agree to the exorbitant fare he was demanding.

Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) general manager Ed Monreal said taxi driver Rodel Ormillo was arrested after the black backpack of OFW Catalina Prado, a laser technician in Oman, was recovered from him.

“It makes me happy that we were able to help Ms. Prado. We assure the public that we are working very hard to rid NAIA (the Ninoy Aquino International Airport) of scalawags and ‘enterprising’ individuals no matter how challenging it is,” Monreal said

Members of the MIAA Intelligence and Investigation Division (IID), led by airport police Inspector Erick Mejia, arrested Ormillo in San Isidro, Rizal after he allegedly victimized Prado.

Prado arrived on Monday (July 16) and she boarded Ormillo’s taxi at the arrival area of NAIA Terminal 1 to take her to Muntinlupa.

But a few meters away from the airport, Ormillo informed Prado that she should pay a “flat rate” of P1,700 instead of using the taxi meter. Prado refused and said she would take another cab.

Ormillo allegedly agreed and quickly unloaded her bags and sped away. But when the OFW counted her bags, she noticed that her black backpack—which contained pieces of jewelry, a credit card, and other valuables—was missing.

Prado went to the IID to file a complaint and reported the plate number of Ormillo’s taxi. The airport police then tracked down the driver’s whereabouts in Rizal.

On July 19, an IID team went to San Isidro, Rizal and, with the help of barangay officials, arrested Ormillo.

The taxi driver initially insisted that he did not have Prado’s backpack but he later admitted that he left it in a friend’s house. The policemen, accompanied by Prado, went there and recovered the backpack, including its contents.

Ormillo was arrested and charged with robbery before the Pasay City Prosecutor’s office, Mejia said.