At around 7 o’clock in the evening on September 25, 2023, a crime involving theft occurred in Negros Occidental when two trucks carrying over 1,000 sacks of sugar were suddenly hijacked. According to reports, the drivers of the vehicles, Jojit Arceño, a resident of Pototan, Iloilo, and John Michael Olegen from Cadiz City, Negros Occidental, were traveling consecutively along La Carlota Road. They were transporting the sugar cargo from the Central in Binalbagan, Negros Occidental, where it was loaded.
In an unexpected turn of events, five individuals stopped on the road to hitch a ride with the mentioned trucks, and they allegedly claimed to be sugar mill workers, so the drivers didn’t hesitate to allow them to board. However, as they were en route to their destination, the suspects suddenly declared a holdup. They ordered the two drivers not to resist, stating that their intention was solely the sugar. Two of the suspects got into Arceño’s vehicle, while the remaining three went with Olegen. They replaced the drivers in operating the trucks while blindfolding them, so the drivers had no idea where they were being taken.
The following morning, around 9 am on September 26, 2023, on the highway in Murcia, Negros Occidental, a motorist noticed that the two drivers were bound and blindfolded at the back of the van where the suspects were being transported. They were left behind the wing van, bound and blindfolded, and the van was locked from the inside. They were only discovered when a motorist heard a noise coming from inside the wing van and subsequently broke it open. The reports indicate that the sugar cargo was supposed to be taken to Iloilo City. Authorities continue to investigate the incident. Source
