Woman who allegedly duped former American lover of P1.7M arrested

Police have arrested in an entrapment operation a 28-year-old woman who allegedly duped her former American lover of some P1.7 million cash supposedly intended for repairs on a house that turned out to be nonexistent.

Manila Police District General Assignment Section (MPD-GAS) operatives nabbed Abegail Galit, of Liwayway Homes Subdivision, Imus, Cavite, on Monday when she allegedly attempted to mulct more money from American tourist Sidney Stephanson, 67, owner of a tile manufacturing company based on Saipan in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, in exchange for her returning the more than P1 million cash she had gotten from him.

Police Officer 3 Abelardo Aguilar, case investigator, told the Inquirer that Galit had allegedly demanded an additional P10,000 cash from Stephanson, which prompted him to seek police assistance when he suspected she was duping him.

Aguilar revealed that they had set up an entrapment operation at around 3 p.m. on Monday against Galit at a fast-food restaurant along Padre Faura Street in Ermita. As soon as she received the marked money from the American tourist, the MPD-GAS operatives announced the bust.

The case investigator said that based on Stephanson’s complaint, Galit had allegedly asked him to send her cash through money transfer after she proposed a business deal involving the sale of a house that needed repairs.

“They broke up in 2005 but Stephanson still agreed with the proposal and started sending her money for the repairs in January last year because he trusted her,” Aguilar explained.

But, he pointed out, the American tourist started to doubt Galit when she would not give him details of where the house is located.

He also became suspicious when after he had already sent a total of P1.7 million cash, the repairs on the house had not been finished.

When Stephanson informed Galit about his doubts, the woman allegedly demanded another P10,000 cash from him after which she promised she would give back the whole amount he had given her.

“After the entrapment operation, Galit admitted that there was really no such house when we asked her about it,” Aguilar told the Inquirer.