A Bacolod businesswoman yesterday said she was swindled of more than P200,000 by a Mexican man selling diamond rings.

Edith Robillo said the man, who introduced himself as Yasser Naura from Mexico, was about 5 feet 4 inches tall, with brown complexion, chubby and spoke broken English, with an accent. He also wore shorts, sandals and sunglasses during the two times that they met.

On Thursday last week (December 6), the Mexican, who said he was left behind by the ship that brought him to the country, met the nephew of her manicurist, Renan Pahayonghayong , at Libertad Street in Bacolod City and asked where Max’s Restaurant is, Robillo said.

While at Max’s Restaurant at the ShoeMart mall, the Mexican showed Pahayonghayong two diamond rings that he said he wanted to sell, Robillo added.

She said Renan and her manicurist, Nenita Pahayonghayong, introduced the Mexican to her and he showed her the two rings. One had a 2 karat diamond, and the other one had a 1.75 karat diamond, she added.

Robillo said she brought the rings to a pawnshop for appraisal and each ring was priced at about P40,000, which is usually one-third of the actual selling price.

The Mexican offered to sell the rings to her for P500,000 but she bargained for P200,000.

The sale did not push through on Thursday and the Mexican told her to keep the rings at her place for the night as they would not be safe at the pension house at Libertad Street where he was staying, Robillo said. The Mexican said that they would see each other the next day, Robillo added.

On Friday morning (December 7), Robillo said she had the rings appraised again by another pawnshop that placed their price at P80,000 each, so she withdrew $6,000 from the bank to pay the Mexican.

However, when she saw the Mexican he said he won in the Casino the night before and did not want to sell the rings anymore, Robillo said.

So she gave the rings back to the Mexican and, in the course of their conversion, he changed his mind and said he would sell them for P250,000 .

Robillo said she gave the Mexican her $6,000 and additional pesos so the amount would reach P250,000, and he gave her the rings. The Mexican then asked her to keep $1,000 of the amount she gave him so he would not lose all his money at the Casino, Robillo said.

When they parted, however, she discovered that the rings the Mexican gave back to her were fakes and that he had checked out of the Rainbow Pension House at Libertad Street, Robillo said.

She said the person at the first pawnshop she brought the rings to also told her that what she had were not the same as the ones she had appraised the day before that were real.

Robillo said she reported the matter to the police but the Mexican has not been found yet.

A Max’s Restaurant representative has promised to review the December 6 footage on their CCTV camera that could have captured the face of the Mexican when he had lunch at the restaurant, she said.

Robillo said she is calling on the public who may come in contact with the Mexican who swindled her to report his whereabouts so his nefarious activities can be put to a stop.*CPG

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