BACOLOD CITY — Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson gave a stern order for the Negros Occidental Provincial Police Office to recover the stolen Fernando Amorsolo painting.
"Do everything possible to recover the stolen art masterpiece," the governor said to provincial police director Col. Rainerio de Chavez.
The Mango Harvesters, a 12x18 inches 1936 masterpiece by the national artist, was stolen from the second floor of the Hofileña Heritage House and Museum in Barangay 1, Silay City on July 3.
The police believe that the heist was carried out by an organized crime group, based on the closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera footage they obtained from the museum.
Silay City Vice Mayor Thomas Ledesma, meanwhile, has called for a thorough investigation into the theft.
"This unfortunate incident will surely have a huge impact on the City of Silay because this house is under our Heritage Area Zone. This needs to be investigated thoroughly, and we in the local government of Silay will see to it that we get to the bottom of this incident so as to prevent it from happening to any of our local museums," Ledesma said.
"Silay has been known for conservation of culture, arts and heritage, and it certainly hurts us when mindless individuals commit this crime. It is an insult to the dedication of local artist Mr. Ramon Hofileña, who personally collected art from the Filipino renowned art masters to share with his fellow Silaynons and Negrenses. That is why this has become personal to us," Ledesma added.
The Silay City police said they have identified one of two suspects who took the masterpiece from the museum.
LtCol. Mark Anthony Darroca, Silay Police chief, said that the male suspect was positively identified by a pedicab driver who transported the two suspects from the museum to the city public plaza where they boarded a passenger jeepney.
Darroca said that the description of the pedicab driver on one of the suspects matched the mugshot of one of their persons of interest as the suspect reportedly took off his mask while riding his pedicab.
He, however, failed to identify the female suspect.
Darroca said that they were able to track down the pedicab driver through a CCTV camera footage.
Darroca did not give the other details of the investigation to the media.
He said that the police will reveal the identity of one of the suspects once a case has been filed.
Darroca said they have coordinated with the Bacolod City Police Office to track down the suspects.
He said that based on the CCTV footage, the male suspect took down the painting while his female companion served as lookout.
The Silay City government has offered a P25,000 reward for the recovery of the painting.
The Hofileña Museum also houses artworks by artists Juan Luna, Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo, Amorsolo, Ang Kiukok, Vicente Manansala, H.R. Ocampo and Ben Cabrera.
Lacson, meanwhile, has asked de Chavez to regularly update him in their investigation.
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