The woman who claimed she was waylaid and held up in Barangay Trapiché, Oton town, Iloilo Province on February 5, 2024 issued a public apology for inventing a “holdup-me” story. 

“Dahil lang sa aking pag-iisip sa depression ko. Sa lahat ng kapulisan at residente ng Oton, pasensya po. At sa lahat, pasensya,” alias “Rose” said.

Police Colonel Ronaldo Palomo, director of the Iloilo Police Provincial Office, accepted the woman’s apology.

Col. Palomo said that “Rose” showed up at the police station to clarify that she fabricated a robbery-holdup story reportedly “after going through depressing moments.” 

She said sorry to the Oton Police for causing them the trouble. 

To recall, the woman who was found to be a resident of Tigbauan town first reported of a holdup at the Tigbauan Municipal Police Station. But since the incident, she said, happened in Oton, the Tigbauan Police called up Oton Municipal Police Station.

Her bogus story has it that she had withdrawn some P23,000 from an Automated Teller Machine in Iloilo City. On her way home to Barangay Buyuan in Tigbauan onboard her motorcycle, she said she noticed of motorcycle-riding men tailing her. Upon reaching Barangay Trapiché in Oton, the riding-in-tandem holduppers went to overtake her, stop her, and then grab her bag.

IPPO is not keen on filing charges against “Rose.” However, Col. Palomo warned the woman and the public that false testimonies, or accounts that have gone through the executing of affidavits, carry criminal liability. 

An offender can be charged for unjust vexation, at the least, Palomo pointed out.

Palomo lauded Oton Municipal Police Station, with  Police Captain Larry John Vidal on the helm, to have established that there was no holdup or no robbery incident on the said date in Barangay Trapiché. 

When asked why she sustained bruises on her arms, which she described earlier to be caused by the struggle she went through when one of the robbers grabbed her bag, the woman answered these were self-inflicted with the use of a cutter. 

'SELF-HARM: PROBABLE SIGN OF DEPRESSION, LYING IS NOT'

Dr. Evony Lambito Allisa-Deveza, psychiatrist, however said that inventing lies is not connected directly with depression.

“Pwede namang hindi depression ang nae-encounter niya. Baka mayroon pa syang conditions like psychosis na itinutulak siya na ganito ang gagawin niya or mayroon pa syang other conditions. Pero mostly kung magbi-base tayo sa depression, wala talaga at kung baga lying in some ways sa criteria for depression,” Dr. Deveza said.

But the self-inflicted bruises are a possible sign of depression, Deveza said.

“Pwede siguro ang self-harm. For example, naisip nyang wala na syang silbi or worthless na sya, pwedeng makagawa sya ng mga pamamaraan na saktan ang kanyang sarili,” Deveza stated.

The doctor called on the public to refrain from bashing “Rose” on social media, and to be prudent always when expressing opinions and comments on the incident.