Tony Labrusca on kleptomaniac past: ‘We all make mistakes’

MANILA, Philippines – After publicly admitting having anger management issues, 23-year-old actor Tony Labrusca revealed during an episode of Tonight With Boy Abunda (TBWA) on April 30, Tuesday, that he had also struggled with kleptomaniac tendencies in the past. 

According to a PEP.ph report, in the episode, he revealed that he used to steal from convenience stores and outlets back when he used to live in Canada.

“Hindi lang sa convenience store. Kung dati kailangan ko ng damit, magnanakaw din ako sa store. Kung kailangan ko ng pagkain, lahat ng feeling kong puwede kong nakawin, ninanakaw ko,” he shared. (I didn’t just steal from convenience stores. If I needed clothes, I’d steal from stores. If I needed food, or anything I felt like I could steal, I’d steal it.)

He proceeds by sharing one of his worst cases of kleptomania. “Pinakamalala may some time gusto ko ng bagong bag, so pumunta ako sa isang store, kinuha ko yung bag. Paglabas ko ng store sabi ko, ‘hindi ito yung kulay na gusto ko, parang mas gusto ko yung green.’ Bumalik ako sa store, kinuha ko yung green, pinasok ko sa purse na ninakaw ko, lumabas nalang ako sobrang saya ko.”

(The worst time was when I wanted a new bag, so I went inside a store and got that bag. When I left the store, I realized the bag wasn’t the color I wanted; I wanted the green. So I returned to the store, got the green one, put it inside the purse I just stole, and lef tthe store super happy.)

Tony also shared why he felt the need to do so. “At that point in my life, I felt my parents couldn’t give me enough to survive through the week. So I thought the only way I’m gonna eat today was steal,” he said.

However, Tony was quick to express afterwards that he understands that what he did was wrong, and that his kleptomaniac tendencies are all in the past. “I don’t want to encourage you guys to do this because it’s wrong. Hindi na po ako nagnanakaw, guys. Hindi na po ako kleptomaniac.”

After the episode aired, Tony then took to Twitter to defend himself, seeing that his honesty on-air sparked backlash from some viewers. 

“You guys are so quick to judge,” he wrote. 

Some of you guys are so quick to judge.
I shared my flaws on TWBA because I’m sharing my HUMANITY with you. It’s human to make mistakes and those mistakes teach you very valuable lessons. TRUST me I’ve experienced that first hand.

— Tony Labrusca (@tonythesharky) April 30, 2019

I admitted to tito boy that I used to steal FOOD and CLOTHES I could not AFFORD. I never said it was right nor am I proud of it.

— Tony Labrusca (@tonythesharky) April 30, 2019

He reiterated that he was not proud of what he had done, and never said that his actions were right. He also promised that he would pay back his dues now that he is financially able to do so.

But I did make light of the situation and if you were there you would know
I PROMISED tito I would pay back the places I took from because I can now afford them.

— Tony Labrusca (@tonythesharky) April 30, 2019

 Tony ends his Twitter thread by calling out the “self-righteous”. “NO ONE is perfect, so stop acting like it,” he said. 

NO ONE is perfect. So stop acting like it. We all make mistakes. Your mistakes aren’t what define you as a person,it’s the effort you put into changing for the better every day.

— Tony Labrusca (@tonythesharky) April 30, 2019

According to the Mayo Clinic, kleptomania is a mental health disorder that is characterized by problems with emotional or behavioral self-control, which then causes the inability to resist urges to steal items that are generally not desperately needed or have little value. 

It is a type of impulse control disorder, which makes it difficult for the patient to resist the temptation to commit an act that’s harmful to the self or others. However, this disorder can be treated with medication and/or psychotherapy. – Rappler.com