Car watcher finds costly gold bracelet

CEBU, Philippines - It was the lucky day for a car watcher operating along Plaridel St., Cebu City, after he found an expensive solid gold bracelet from one of the used clothes given to him by the owner of a hardware firm last Tuesday evening.

Orlando Sambilad quickly told his wife, Lorelie, to take the inch-wide gold bracelet, he found in the pocket of a shirt.

At first, Lorelie believed that the shiny bracelet was just a fake and wanted to sell it to a jewelry buyer at the Carbon Market last Wednesday morning as she was told that the jewelry is just gold-plated and good only for P500.

But Lorelie thought twice and brought the bracelet to a pawnshop in Barangay Pasil to have it appraised and later got the shock of her life after she was told that it can be accepted for P100,000.

“Nakuyawan ko pagkasayod sa kadaku sa kantidad. Gipangutana ko nila kon diin to nako ug gitug-anan nako sila sa tinuod nga kinit-an ra nako ang alahas,” Lorelie said.

She told the pawnshop personnel she only wanted to pawn the bracelet for P50,000 even if the pawnshop was willing to take it for P100,000.

The pawnshop manager told The FREEMAN that although Lorelie was the one who signed the documents of the pawned jewelry it was Lorelie’s aunt who received the amount from them.

A policeman who lived in Pasil learned that somebody had pawned an expensive gold bracelet at a pawnshop in their place and informed Theft and Robbery Section chief Bonifacio Garciano about it.

Garciano quickly sent policeman Jeffrey Diola to get hold of the said gold bracelet to determine if it was among the loot taken by robbers from a house in Saint Jude Acres in Barangay Pardo last April 3.

The pawnshop manager said she refused to turn over the bracelet to the policeman unless it will be redeemed by Lorelie.

Garciano was able to convince Lorelie to redeem the bracelet last Wednesday afternoon and it was the policemen who paid the P750 representing the interest. And since nobody has yet claimed ownership of the jewelry the policemen allowed Lorelie to go home.

Thinking that the policeman had ulterior motives of his own, Lorelie sought the help of the media.

“Usa ka polis miingon ‘kwarta na ni’. Kun dili maamo ang maong alahas, i-uli sa tag-iya apan dili kay adto sa mga polis,” she said.

Garciano said a certain Vic Chua, one of the owners of Cathay Hardware that gave used clothing to the sidewalk dwellers said he cannot tell if the bracelet was among the jewelry owned by his late mother.

According to Garciano if the hardware owners will not claim ownership of the jewelry they will not object if it will be given to Lorelie and her husband Orlando.

“Walay problema, ihatag namo sa ila ang gold bracelet,” he said.

Lawyer Michael Yu, outgoing president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, said the couple cannot claim the bracelet as it was not intentionally given to them.

However, he said if no one claims the said bracelet then it should be given to the ones who found it. (FREEMAN)