Warn your kids about this new (or old na?) modus operandi

[sequoia]

Saw this at therisian forum, warn your kids guys.


Fw: Warn your kids about this new modus operandi


I'd like to share with you the letter of my classmate Amy Arellano- Parlade HS'75 which contains an account of the harrowing experience of her 13 year old son at Trinoma Mall in QC.
Please warn your children or relatives about this modus operandi.

Date: Sunday, 24 August, 2008, 8:47 AM
Dear Kelly,

Did you know that after the scare that my 13-year old son Aaron got in the Ateneo parking lot last August 7, he became the victim of a crime last August 18? That Monday was a holiday and Aaron and his classmates agreed to meet at Trinoma after lunch for band practice at a classmate's house. He didn't want to be dropped off t his classmate's house probably because it was more exciting to walk from Trinoma to Philam. You know how kids at this age like to try out their independence.

Anyway, there were three of them already and were waiting for a fourth boy when they decided to check out a sporting goods store.

When the fourth boy arrived, they walked towards the exit. As they were descending the elevator, a man in plainclothes flashed his badge at them. He immediately put his arm across the shoulders of one boy and accused all of them that they had damaged some merchandise at the sporting goods store. He was so convincing because he described all the items that they touched and looked at. He then ordered all of them to take out the contents of their pockets - wallet, cellphone, ipod - and give it to one of their friends for safekeeping because he was going to conduct a body search. After they did so, he told Aaron and his friend to wash their hands in preparation for fingerprinting.

When Aaron and his friend got back from the washroom, they got the scare of their lives. Their other friend holding all their stuff was gone with the man! They immediately called a security guard and Trinoma Security in turn called us. Before rushing to Trinoma, I immediately called the mother of the missing boy in case she wasn't told yet. You cannot imagine the things that were running through my head. I was really more afraid for the boy who was taken than for Aaron because they were safe in the Security Office.

When we got to Trinoma, the missing boy as well as his Mom were there already. Thank God! He tearfully narrated how the man made him to go to their "main office." They walked until West Avenue and the man left him in a building somewhere there. Of course, the man brought all their
stuff with him. It took the boy about an hour to get back to Trinoma. He was reunited with his friends after he heard his name being paged.

Then Security brought them to the sporting goods store to view the surveillance camera. They were able to identify the man and it clearly showed that they were being observed and followed all the time they were in the store!

Aaron was really affected by this ordeal. Sometime in the middle of the night, he woke me up because he couldn't breathe. I went to his room to stay with him for a while. It was only around 4 a.m. that he finally went to sleep out of exhaustion.

This experience can be traumatic for any child. Tell your kids to be AWARE OF THEIR SURROUNDINGS most especially when they are out with their friends. It is easy to be lulled into a sense of comfort when you are in a group. However, young kids with no adult present are easy prey to criminal elements. Yes, it is easy to replace their cellphones, ipods and wallets. But can we easily erase the trauma?

Amy