MANILA (AFP) - Police in the Philippine capital have banned the
wearing of caps in shopping malls to stop criminals concealing
their identity from security cameras.
The ban was imposed after a gang of hammer-wielding robbers
looted a jewellery store at a popular suburban Manila shopping mall
on December 15. The suspects are believed to have used baseball
caps to hide their identities.
Police officials for Manila and its suburbs met with shopping
mall security officials last week, telling them to bar people
wearing caps from entering as a security precaution, said Metro
Manila police spokesman Chief Inspector Robert Domingo.
"We studied their strategies. If they want to commit a crime,
they wear caps. That way, the (closed circuit) TV will not be able
to photograph their faces," he told AFP on Monday.