Falcons suffer double whammy as players lose valuables in locker room

6 July 2013 at 6:03 am

ÊMANILA, Philippines - It was reported that the members of the Soaring Falcons lost some valuables inside their dugout after the matchup between the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Growling Tigers and the Adamson University (AdU) Soaring Falcons for the University Athletic Association Philippines (UAAP) Season 76 basketball tournament held at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum in Cubao Quezon City, northeast of Manila on 06 July 2013. (George Calvelo/NPPA Images)

Call it a nightmarish Saturday for host Adamson.

Moments after suffering a 62-67 defeat inflicted by University of Santo Tomas on Saturday, several Falcons players found out they lost valuables and cash inside their dug-out in another robbery incident at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum that rocked UAAP Season 76 men’s basketball action.

According to coach Leo Austria, at least five Adamson players were victimized, most notably ace wingman Jericho Cruz who had his Iphone5 and around five thousand pesos cash stolen.

Starting guard Ar-raouf Julkipli, Matthew Bernabe, Gian Abrigo and Jherome Garcia also reportedly lost their cellular phones.

“Natalo ka na, nanakawan ka pa,” said Austria.

“Alam nating secured ito (the venue) kaso nangyari pa rin. Malamang ‘yung mga gumawa niyan sanay na dito,” he added. “Nakakadala ‘yung mga ganyan. Kaya kailangan mag-ingat na lang.”

Austria stated they are now banking on the Big Dome management to come up with a thorough investigation regarding the unfortunate incident.

It was the second season in a row that a robbery incident happened inside the venue. Last year an accredited UAAP photographer lost his laptop inside the press room.