Public warned vs new car theft scams

This Manila Times file photo shows the Philippine National Police’s Highway Patrol Group conducting one-time, big-time operations against erring motorists along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City on Jan. 15, 2021. They apprehended drivers of unregistered vehicles and those with unauthorized plates and motorcycle riders without proper safety gears. PHOTO BY JOHN ORVEN VERDOTE

THE Philippine National Police-Highway Patrol Group (PNP-HPG) on Wednesday warned the public against new scams perpetrated by car thieves.

Apart from “gun- and knife-point intimidations”, car thieves now have “Rent-Tangay, Assume-Balance scam (Pasalo-Benta), Pasalo-Benta-Bawi, Labas Casa through loan accommodation (Labas-Casa-Talon) and Labas-Casa-Talon”.

For Rent-Tangay, also known as Rent-Tangay-Sangla, a car thief will pose as a client for a car rental business and once he or she is in possession of the vehicle, will dispose of it by pawning off the vehicle or selling it with fake documents to “unsuspecting buyers,” the HPG said.

Assume-Balance scam is where a car thief poses as a buyer of an encumbered motor vehicle and promises to pay for the car’s monthly amortization.

“While the downpayment and the monthly amortizations already paid are usually reimbursed to the MV’s (motor vehicle’s) owner, the assume-buyer has no intention of paying the remaining amortizations but will dispose of the MV to generate profit,” the HPG said.

The Pasalo-Benta-Bawi scheme is where the car thief secretly installs a GPS tracker to his or her vehicle and will sell it to another person through the Assume-Balance sale.

Transactions are usually done in casinos where a potential victim purchases the GPS-planted vehicle.

After the buyer assumes ownership, the perpetrator will report this to authorities and claim that he or she was victimized by the “Assume-Balance” scam that will result in the filing of charges against the buyer.

The police will help the suspect track down the GPS-planted vehicle and reclaim the vehicle from the buyer-victim.

Labas-Casa-Talon is a scheme in which a syndicate usually preys on overseas Filipino workers’ spouses or anyone who can pass credit investigations.

Under the scheme, the would-be victim is convinced to have his or her car loan application placed under the suspect’s name.

The suspect tells his or her intended victim that the vehicle will be used for business purposes and that he or she will pay the monthly amortization ranging from P30,000 to P75,000, depending on the vehicle type.

The suspect promises to turn over the vehicle to the victim once the loan is fully paid.

“Of course, the syndicate has no intention of fulfilling those and will either pawn or sell the MV using fake papers,” the HPG said.

The “Labas-Casa-Talon” scheme has a “more elaborate version”, the HPG said.

The perpetrator convinces a legitimate company’s human resource division personnel to pose as a contact for a credit investigator who will call “and affirm that a certain car loan applicant is an employee.”

The contact, in return, will be paid from P15,000 to P30,000, depending on the vehicle’s type, once the vehicle is released.

After securing assistance from the contact, the syndicate will make a fake identification card for one of his or her accomplices and use a daily-rental condominium unit address.

During the scheduled visit of the credit investigator, the accomplice will pose as the owner of the condominium, which is rented for that day, and will show fake proof of billing, as the contact confirms accomplice’s employment status.

Other credit investigation phases are accomplished through phone calls with the required documents scanned and submitted through social media apps such as Viber or Facebook Messenger.

The bogus documents will be presented when the vehicle is released. “By then, both the bank and car dealer have been swindled by a bogus car loan applicant”, the HPG said.

The HPG said information on the new scams by car thieves is a “heads-up” to vehicle owners “as prevention is always better than cure”.

“We request the public to share these information on the new trends of carnapping,” Police Brig. Gen. Alexander Tagum, the PNP-HPG director, said in a statement, referring to the social media cards they posted on Facebook.

He also encouraged victims and anyone who is aware of car theft syndicates to call 09262255474 so that the HPG can provide appropriate and immediate assistance.

Source: ManilaTimes