Philippine Corruption Investigator Robbed in N.Y. Restaurant
The head of the Philippine commission investigating alleged corruption in the regime of former President Ferdinand E. Marcos was robbed of his briefcase, which contained copies of papers related to the inquiry, police reported Friday.
Jovito R. Salonga, his wife, Lydia, and their daughter, Victoria, were in a Korean restaurant in midtown Thursday night when a man pointed out five $1 bills under a table, Sgt. Raymond O’Donnell said.
As the daughter reached to pick up the bills, her parents’ attention was diverted from their belongings, and they looked back to find that Salonga’s briefcase and his wife’s handbag were gone, O’Donnell said. The couple did not see who took them, he said.
The robbery came a few hours after Salonga, head of the Commission for Good Government, gave a deposition in a court case involving the alleged U.S. holdings of Marcos. The briefcase contained documents pertaining to the case, but they were duplicates, O’Donnell said.
Police would not say if they believed the robbery was connected to the Marcos case.
The Salongas also lost $5,000 in travelers checks, $2,300 in cash, plane tickets and their passports, O’Donnell said.
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