DAVAO CITY, Philippines — Police Regional Director Brigadier Common Nicolas Torre III has directed the Regional Investigation and Detection Administration Unit to reinvestigate the circumstances surrounding the demise of architect Vlance Marie Bragas and the disappearance of househelp Justine Mae Saldua, each of which occurred in 2023.
The unsolved circumstances of the 2 ladies have raised issues concerning the Davao Metropolis Police’s dedication to fixing circumstances, significantly these involving ladies. In response, Torre has ordered the reopening of those investigations in hopes of delivering justice for the victims and figuring out the true suspects.
“We have to unravel these circumstances; we should resolve the mysteries as a result of they contain lives,” Torre acknowledged.
CCTV footage captured Bragas hailing and boarding a yellow Ombak automobile (just like a tricycle) at 10:39 p.m. on Might 16. Tragically, she was discovered lifeless throughout the neighborhood of a banana plantation on Might 17, simply hours after she went lacking. The post-mortem revealed that she died from “asphyxia by handbook strangulation.”
Within the case of Justine Mae Saldua, a 21-year-old mom of three who labored for Police Main Michael Uyanguren, she disappeared on August 28, 2023, the day she was presupposed to return residence to Davao de Oro. An examination of her stays indicated “latest genital trauma,” confirming that she had been raped.
Authorities have recognized a number of suspects, together with Dennis Roy P. Panzan, Kent Laurence Metegreto Espinosa, Renato Ali Bayansao, and one unidentified particular person. Panzan and Espinosa reportedly went lacking after being allegedly kidnapped by unidentified people on Might 27. Panzan was later discovered severely injured in Matina Pangi on Might 29 however succumbed to his accidents shortly after being taken to Davao Adventist Hospital.
Former Metropolis Police Director Col. Albert Lupaz famous {that a} separate investigation is underway concerning the circumstances surrounding the alleged kidnapping of those two suspects, which finally led to Panzan’s demise.
In the meantime, Bayansao, who drove the Ombak automobile that Bragas boarded, is presently within the custody of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Company (PDEA) in Davao following his arrest throughout a drug buy-bust operation on Might 28 in Calinan.
Saldua’s dad and mom, Jimmy and Maria Lourdes, have sought help from Senator Raffy Tulfo a number of occasions, as their daughter has not been seen since her disappearance.
Throughout a video name together with her mom shortly earlier than she went lacking, Saldua exhibited indicators of misery, with swollen eyes and an lack of ability to talk freely. Her mom additionally seen a person sitting close by throughout the name.
In a earlier interview with Senator Tulfo, Main Uyanguren claimed that that they had given Saldua P5,000 earlier than her disappearance. The Uyanguren household acknowledged that the final communication that they had together with her was when she boarded a taxi heading to the Ecoland terminal.
Nonetheless, Saldua’s mom later recovered messages wherein her daughter claimed she had been taken by a white L-300 van, marking her final recognized communication.
As her dad and mom proceed to seek for solutions, they categorical their deep anguish over her absence. “I don’t know if our daughter is alive or lifeless,” her father instructed Tulfo. Her mom added, “We pray, however somebody have to be held accountable for what occurred to them. It’s extremely troublesome to attend in uncertainty, understanding the circumstances. I can’t sleep at night time.”
“I don’t know if she’s alive or lifeless. If she’s alive, please carry her again. If she’s lifeless, we simply wish to see her and know what actually occurred,” her mom emphasised.
