Car company employees nabbed for telco subscription fraud

For allegedly faking identities and documents to get a postpaid subscription with high-end phones, four employees of a car company were arrested by the police and Globe Telecom security in Cebu.

Employees of Kia Motors in SM Cebu City namely Girly Belleza, Allen Marie Almario, Gerald Anthony Lizares and Wildredo Arabis have been arrested for subscription fraud, according to Globe Telecom Inc.’s media release.

A joint team of Cebu City police and Globe Telecom security caught the suspects in an entrapment operation after allegedly submitting fake documents to apply for postpaid accounts that included provision for expensive smartphones.

“Based on investigation, the four individuals all submitted fake documents, using fictitious names, in acquiring postpaid subscription with high end phones,” the telecommunications company said.

Citing a police report, Globe Telecom said Belleza, a sales agent of Kia, got two units of iPhone 6 Plus and iPhone 5 while Almario, a cashier of the car company, got three cellphone units including an iPhone 6, an iPhone 6 Plus and a Samsung Galaxy Core Prime.

Another Kia sales agent, Lizares, was able to get two units of iPhone 6 Plus while Arabis, an administrative employee of Kia, got two units of iPhone 6 and a Lenovo handphone.

The arrested individuals have been detained by the police while criminal charges are being filed against them.

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The telco giant vowed to prosecute illegal activities involving their products and services with the aid of its “Protech101 campaign.”

“The campaign tackles the issues of weak passwords, the dangers of the auto fill feature, online sharing of information and awareness on new software and other factors that make an account unstable and vulnerable to danger,” it said. CDG

READ: Tips to avoid becoming an identity theft victim