by: Angelica Arquero

Two male minors were caught on CCTV stealing the earnings of an honesty flower shop in Baguio City, an incident that disappointed both the shop’s staff and visiting tourists.

The theft occurred at around 10:00 p.m. on December 18 at the Ili-Likha Artist Village in Barangay Kabayanihan.

CCTV footage showed the two minors arriving at the area and checking whether there were people nearby before approaching the flower shop.

Moments later, one of the minors took a box containing the shop’s earnings from the front of the store.

The amount inside the box was estimated at 800 pesos.

Staff members expressed sadness over the incident, saying the stolen box was meant to hold payments made by customers without supervision.

As a precaution, the shop plans to secure the box with a chain.

The honesty flower shop was launched in 2020 by well-known floral artist Antonio Paulite.

According to the shop’s management, this was the first time the establishment had experienced theft since it opened.

Tourists Jillian Navarales and Ai Jaira from Pangasinan said they were disappointed by the incident, noting that they intentionally visited the shop to experience the trust-based system of buying and paying without attendants.

They shared that the concept made them feel good and reflected the unique culture of trust often associated with Baguio City.

The management of the flower shop is set to report the incident to the Baguio City Police Office for further investigation.