Amulet for good luck lands 3 in Manaoag jail

MANAOAG, Pangasinan – Three persons selling bato ni Darna (Darna’s stone), allegedly for good luck and good health, found themselves locked up in jail after people complained against them for fooling them.

Superintendent Mateo Casupang, police chief here, told The STAR yesterday that since yesterday was a holiday in the province, they are set to file today swindling case against the suspects identified as Florante Elivado, 47, Noly Peralta, 31 and Robert Peralta, 35, all residents of Quinavite, Bauang, La Union.

The modus operandi of the suspects is to sell Darna’s stones at P150 to P250 each allegedly to bring good luck and fortune especially to gamblers or those engaged in business transactions. The buyers should place these stones inside their pockets during transactions, Casu­pang said quoting the complainants.

Darna, a Filipino comics super heroine, swallows a stone to give her super powers to fight evil in her stories.

The suspects also have fake Chinese medicines as their front as well as cement-like substances allegedly to cure poisonous insect bites and dog bites.

Many people lined up to buy their products when the police arrested them Sunday in the public market.

The suspects had been enjoying brisk sales since Thursday until complainants started to seek help from their ba­rangay officials to accompany them to the police for being fooled by the suspects.

“Sabi ng mga complainants, imbes na swertehin daw sila, mas minamalas pa daw sila. At yong mga nakagat naman ng aso, sa ospital daw ang bagsak nila at gumastos ng malaki kasi mas lumalala ang sugat nila (Complainants said instead of getting good luck, they suffered misfortunes. And those bitten by dogs ended in hospitals and incurred more expenses because their wounds worsened),” Casupang said.