A man snatched the necklace of a candle vendor in Davao City but failed to go far with it after the motorcycle he was riding fell.

The 61-year-old woman was tending to her candles outside a church in Datu Abing in Barangay Calinann Proper when the suspect on board a motorcycle posed as a customer.

The suspect tugged the necklace off the woman’s neck as she was handing him candles.

The woman was dragged to the ground as she held on to the suspect’s arm when the latter tried to speed off.

“While nagsakay siya sa iyang motorcyle, nagtunol ang kaning biktima nato nga 61 years old. While nagtunol, iyahang gilabni ang kwentas sa biktima nato and while iyanang gilabni, nagunitan siya sa biktima,” Davao City Police Office (DCPO) Spokesperson, Captain Hazel Tuazon, said.

Unfortunately for the suspect, the driver of another vehicle heard the victim’s shout for help and stopped his vehicle to block the motorcycle.

The motorcycle fell to the ground and people in the area came together to prevent the suspect from escaping.

“Unya nihunong man dinha. Naa man toy transformer tapos naa puy L3. Sige man shagit si Susan nga hold up, hold up. So, nihunong ang L3, nakadungog, giana niya ang motor. Murag giipit gani niya. Natumba ang motor unya naigo iyang side mirror,” Tuazon added.

It so happened that cops were patrolling the area so the suspect was arrested immediately.

Police said the 32-year-old suspect is actually a supervisor of an establishment and his alleged obsession with online gambling allegedly forced him to commit the crime.

“Nabuhat ni niya kay nabuang siya sa sugal or kaning ginatawag nga scatter. And then one of the reasons nga nabuang ka sa sugal, maong mangawat nalang ka. So, mao ni ang resulta sa iyaha. Mao ng remind nato nga dili ta muapil sa isa ka butang nga dili nato kaya, dili nato kaya suportahan ang bisyo,” Tuazon said.

The Thailand gold necklace of the victim worth P80,000 was recovered, but it was already broken.

The suspect is facing theft charges. He did not issue a statement.