While we’ve heard countless inspiring stories detailing the kindness of strangers, it doesn’t hurt to be reminded every once in awhile that not every stranger is kind; sometimes, your suspicions really are well-placed.
Luís Simões left his job as a motion designer at a TV station in Lisbon and sold all his property in order to journey the world, sketching its people and its sights. Little did he know that he would lose some of that money to one of the first sketches he would make in Manila.
The subject in question is one of five people who would go on to drug him, rob him of his valuables and withdraw P40,000 from his debit card.
He would even take a selfie with three of them, a photo that would provide a reminder of his ordeal.
“I just saw a truth about Manila,” Simões told the Inquirer soon after reporting the robbery to the Pasay City police station.
Simões is a 36-year-old Portuguese sketch artist; he had planned to travel all five continents in five years on a tight budget, and received a lot of media attention in Portugal.
He was robbed by the Ativan Gang, a group of thieves that specializes in befriending tourists, and then giving them drug-laced food and drinks.
Simões’ cautionary tale begins at the Manila Cathedral on Dec 22, 2015, when two middle-aged women approached him.
“They said they were visiting the city. One of them asked me if I wanted to follow them in their little tour around the town. They seemed so friendly and nice. You wouldn’t suspect they had bad intentions,” Simões said- a misjudgment that he would at least live to learn from.
Taken in by their friendly demeanor, he accepted their invitation- this wasn’t entirely surprising for him, as he had made plenty of friends and acquaintances during his travels in the past. There are certainly genuinely friendly people, wherever one travels.
When they were done with the tour, the women brought him to the 199 Bar and Restaurant on Arnaiz Street in Pasay City. There he met a man who introduced himself as the cousin of the ladies.
“I felt there was sympathy and a good vibe,” he said. He noticed that the man made certain that his glass was topped up with beer as they sang karaoke songs.
They paid the P700 tab and left the bar at about 8 or 9 pm.
Simões was already drunk, and was led to a van- when one of the women said “let’s have dinner.”
In the van were two other strangers, who claimed that they were visiting relatives. Within the vehicle, they continued to stuff him with food and drinks- until one of the women asked him for the address he was staying at, which he told her and soon went under.
When he came to, he found himself in a Makati City hostel with little more than a hangover. His valuables, however, were gone- though the thieves chose to leave him his camera and phone for some reason. They tried to delete all his photos, but he managed to recover the selfie and a photo of the sketch.
He stopped his debit card, and realized that his “hosts” had already made off with P40,000.
“Since that day, giving trust and finding pleasure in dealing with new people had been lost,” Simões said. “Manila gave me the worst experience of easily trusting people and accepting their help in a genuine way.”
Officer Miko Camillo claims that nabbing the gang members would be difficult because victims would not stay in the country, “if they report it, they will not longer pursue the case because they have to leave the country.” This somehow led to most cases being dismissed.
“There is no desire to come back here but it is a great story to tell,” said Simões, who wanted the robbers caught and to warn other tourists to be careful when visiting the Philippines.
A Vietnamese woman had also recently been robbed by the Ativan Gang, stepping forward after reading about Simões’ story. Fortunately, she only lost the valuables she had on her person-her bank prevented the thieves from withdrawing anything from her account.
Sources: Inquirer
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