Apart from “gun- and knife-point intimidations”, car thieves now have “Rent-

Tangay, Assume-Balance scam (Pasalo-Benta), Pasalo-Benta-Bawi, Labas

Casa through loan accommodation (Labas-Casa-Talon) and Labas-Casa-

Talon”.

For Rent-Tangay, also known as Rent-Tangay-Sangla, a car thief will pose as

a client for a car rental business and once he or she is in possession of the

vehicle, will dispose of it by pawning off the vehicle or selling it with fake

documents to “unsuspecting buyers,” the HPG said.

Assume-Balance scam is where a car thief poses as a buyer of an encumbered

motor vehicle and promises to pay for the car’s monthly amortization.

“While the downpayment and the monthly amortizations already paid are

usually reimbursed to the MV’s (motor vehicle’s) owner, the assume-buyer

has no intention of paying the remaining amortizations but will dispose of the

MV to generate profit,” the HPG said.

The Pasalo-Benta-Bawi scheme is where the car thief secretly installs a GPS

tracker to his or her vehicle and will sell it to another person through the

Assume-Balance sale.
Transactions are usually done in casinos where a potential victim purchases

the GPS-planted vehicle.

After the buyer assumes ownership, the perpetrator will report this to

authorities and claim that he or she was victimized by the “Assume-Balance”

scam that will result in the filing of charges against the buyer.

The police will help the suspect track down the GPS-planted vehicle and

reclaim the vehicle from the buyer-victim.

Labas-Casa-Talon is a scheme in which a syndicate usually preys on overseas

Filipino workers’ spouses or anyone who can pass credit investigations.

Under the scheme, the would-be victim is convinced to have his or her car

loan application placed under the suspect’s name.

The suspect tells his or her intended victim that the vehicle will be used for

business purposes and that he or she will pay the monthly amortization

ranging from P30,000 to P75,000, depending on the vehicle type.

The suspect promises to turn over the vehicle to the victim once the loan is

fully paid.
“Of course, the syndicate has no intention of fulfilling those and will either

pawn or sell the MV using fake papers,” the HPG said.

The “Labas-Casa-Talon” scheme has a “more elaborate version”, the HPG

said.

The perpetrator convinces a legitimate company’s human resource division

personnel to pose as a contact for a credit investigator who will call “and

affirm that a certain car loan applicant is an employee.”

The contact, in return, will be paid from P15,000 to P30,000, depending on

the vehicle’s type, once the vehicle is released.

After securing assistance from the contact, the syndicate will make a fake

identification card for one of his or her accomplices and use a daily-rental

condominium unit address.

During the scheduled visit of the credit investigator, the accomplice will pose

as the owner of the condominium, which is rented for that day, and will show

fake proof of billing, as the contact confirms accomplice’s employment

status.
Other credit investigation phases are accomplished through phone calls with

the required documents scanned and submitted through social media apps

such as Viber or Facebook Messenger.

The bogus documents will be presented when the vehicle is released. “By

then, both the bank and car dealer have been swindled by a bogus car loan

applicant”, the HPG said.

The HPG said information on the new scams by car thieves is a “heads-up” to

vehicle owners “as prevention is always better than cure”.

“We request the public to share these information on the new trends of

carnapping,” Police Brig. Gen. Alexander Tagum, the PNP-HPG director,

said in a statement, referring to the social media cards they posted on

Facebook.

He also encouraged victims and anyone who is aware of car theft syndicates

to call 09262255474 so that the HPG can provide appropriate and immediate

assistance.