Two men were arrested after allegedly offering bodega slots at Cebu City’s Carbon Public Market despite lacking authority to award or guarantee market spaces, the National Bureau of Investigation Cebu Division Office (NBI CEBDO) said.
NBI CEBDO chief Arnel Pura said Paquito Enriquez Asignar Jr., also known as George and Jun, and Rosalito Ventulan Arong were arrested on Sept. 1 after Carbon Market vendor Melinda Bingil complained about the alleged scheme.
Pura said Asignar allegedly represented himself as authorized by the Cebu City Market Office to award bodega slots and initially asked Bingil to pay P50,000 per slot.
Bingil verified the claim with the City Market Office before proceeding further and was told that Asignar had no authority to award or guarantee any market space.
The NBI later secured a certification from Cebu City Market Administrator Elconjim Concha confirming that Asignar was not authorized to award or guarantee bodega slots.
The suspects were arrested at about 5:30 p.m. near Puso Village in Barangay Sto. Niño while allegedly receiving marked money from Bingil in an entrapment operation assisted by NBI 7 operatives.
According to Pura, Asignar allegedly claimed to have influence and authority to transact with the Cebu City Government, while Arong allegedly claimed to have rights over a bodega slot and offered it to prospective buyers.
Pura clarified that Asignar was not a Cebu City Government employee, including a job order or casual worker.
He also said the Office of Cebu City Mayor Nestor Archival had no involvement in the transactions, adding that Asignar allegedly invoked the mayor’s office to make his claims appear legitimate.
Arong, meanwhile, was identified as a job order worker assigned to the Cebu City Market special task force.
Pura said Arong also claimed to have rights to a bodega slot, but the City Market Office denied this based on its records.
Concha said Arong had no authority to collect payments from prospective vendors because payments for market spaces should be made through the City Treasurer’s Office.
He said securing a market stall or bodega requires several steps, including submitting a letter of intent and undergoing evaluation by the appropriate offices before a space can be awarded.
Concha advised prospective vendors to coordinate directly with the City Market Office and avoid dealing with individuals who claim to have authority to offer market spaces.
Vendor’s complaint
Bingil said she pursued the transaction because she needed additional storage space for her banana vending business.
She said she initially paid P25,000 in July and another P25,000 on Aug. 2 after being told the payments would secure bodega slots Nos. 85 and 87.
She later paid another P3,000, which she was told was for document processing.
Bingil said she became suspicious after Asignar failed to provide receipts for the payments. She then sought assistance and eventually coordinated with the NBI.
She said her primary concern was not recovering the money but stopping the alleged scheme from victimizing other vendors.
Pura urged other individuals who may have been approached through a similar scheme to report their complaints to authorities.
Other cases
Pura said the NBI is investigating complaints from other individuals who may have been victimized through a similar scheme.
He also said NBI verification showed that Asignar had a pending estafa case in Camarines Sur dating back to 2015 and had recently been arrested in connection with another estafa case in Lapu Lapu City.
Pura described Asignar as someone who had allegedly been involved in similar incidents.
The two suspects were referred to the Cebu City Prosecutor’s Office for inquest proceedings on Sept. 3. They were charged with estafa under Article 315 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended, and usurpation of authority.
Suspects’ statements
In a separate interview, Asignar declined to answer questions from the media, saying he would face the case with the assistance of his lawyer.
Arong apologized to the alleged victims and said he did not anticipate that the transaction was part of a scheme.
Photo by VCL
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