‘Gas-and-run’ suspect surrenders

Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!

Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.

Visit Suniway.ph to learn

May 8, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — After police launched an intensified manhunt for his arrest, a motorist who fled without paying P1,500 worth of fuel at a gas station in Quezon City surrendered to authorities on Wednesday night.

The suspect, alias Michael, arrived at the Project 6 police station 15 in a car, which he loaded with fuel on Sunday at a gasoline station along Mindanao Avenue.

Philippine National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Randulf Tuano said the 39-year-old suspect surrendered after Quezon City Police District (QCPD) personnel went to the motorist’s house in Barangay Mallorca, San Leonardo, Nueva Ecija.

Michael and his wife, who is the registered owner of the car, were not around when police went to their house.

When contacted on the phone, Michael admitted that he was the driver in the “gas-and-run” incident, which had gone viral.

Michael personally apologized to the pump attendant. He also paid P1,500 in fuel.

Despite paying for the fuel, the QCPD still filed a complaint for estafa against the suspect before the city prosecutor’s office.

“His apology was accepted by the pump attendant, but the case against him would be pursued,” Tuano said in a statement.

Police said the suspect insisted that he paid for the fuel using a debit card, a claim that was contradicted by the gas station employee.

The suspect told probers that he was having an argument with his wife over the phone while he and his companion were at the gas station.

Tuano said Michael’s spouse was angry at him for not going home early from a drinking binge.

The QCPD has asked the Land Transportation Office to revoke Michael’s driver’s license after the same vehicle figured in a traffic violation, which was recorded on video somewhere in Metro Manila in October last year.

In the video, the sedan swerved to the opposite lane and nearly hit an incoming vehicle.