Rookie cop’s body recovered from Iloilo River

By Jennifer P. Rendon

A body was found floating in the Iloilo River in Mandurriao, Iloilo City, on the morning of July 20.

A jogger discovered the body while running along Esplanade 1 in Barangay San Rafael around 9 a.m. Sunday.

It took investigators some time to identify the fatality.

A wallet found in the pants pocket helped police confirm the deceased was a patrolman assigned to the PNP Regional Communication and Electronics Unit 6, a national support unit based in Camp Martin Delgado, Iloilo City.

Captain Val Cambel, chief of Iloilo City Police Station 10, said the 28-year-old policeman was a resident of Sta. Catalina, Negros Oriental.

Initial reports stated that he was last seen alive by his officemates on the evening of Friday, July 18.

Cambel said members of the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) initially found no visible injuries on the officer’s body.

“But we will still conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of his death,” Cambel added.