Comelec chair Garcia's bag stolen, P10K missing

A bag belonging to Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairperson George Garcia was stolen from a restaurant in Pasay City on Tuesday afternoon.

Garcia, who had attended a Senate hearing earlier that day, reported the theft to Super Radyo dzBB and later identified one of the suspects through CCTV footage.

The stolen bag contained cash, a cellphone, identification cards but no sensitive information; however, at least P10,000 was missing when authorities recovered it from the suspect named 'Hazel'.

Police arrested Hazel, a 44-year-old woman, in Varangay Zapote in Las Piñas City on Wednesday afternoon.

Garcia's bodyguards attempted to chase the suspects without success, leading investigators to review CCTV footage which identified three suspects named Romson, Alberto, and Jun who are reportedly involved in similar incidents.

The police have launched a hot pursuit operation and nationwide dragnet to apprehend the remaining five suspects with the case now being investigated by the Pasay City Police Station's Investigation and Detective Management Section.