‘Missing teen’ found dead

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD City – A female teenager who was reported missing on Aug. 19, 2022, was found dead on the third floor of the Cineplex building, Araneta Street, Barangay 14 here last Saturday.

Police did not disclose the name of the 18-year-old victim, as they are initially looking into it as a case of an alleged suicide.

Police Major Ramel Sarona, head of Police Station 1, said the victim left their house around 9 a.m. Friday to process her application for a scholarship in a private school.

But she failed to go home that night, prompting her parents to look for her and reported her missing to the police Saturday morning after they failed to find her.

Her younger sister even posted a notice on Facebook asking for help to locate her older sister.

On Aug. 20, she was found lifeless in a vacant room past 12 noon, with a deep cut on her right wrist, Sarona said. A cutter was also found beside her body.

Sarona said the building’s security guard discovered the victim’s body when he checked the third floor, which is under repair.

Sarona said the victim’s family is suspecting that she may have felt pressure to apply for a scholarship to proceed to college.

He said the victim’s family did not notice anything suspicious before she was found dead.

A few days ago, her mother told her that she will accompany her to school, but she refused until they later found out that her daughter did not take an entrance exam.

Sarona said the victim was subjected to an autopsy to determine the cause of her death. They could not yet tell if there was foul play, pending the autopsy result.