Suspect in teen’s rape-slay falls

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD City – Police nabbed yesterday a 62-year-old man, who was tagged in the brutal killing of a senior high school student in Cadiz City, Negros Occidental over the weekend.

Police Lieutenant Colonel John Joel Batusbatusan, city police chief, identified the suspect as Federico Delfin Jr.

Delfin was arrested in Barangay Tampalon, Kabankalan City after the victim’s family told the police that the suspect had a family there.

Batusbatusan, who was the former police chief in Kabankalan City, then tapped the Kabankalan City Police Station to help monitor the suspect until he was sighted in Barangay Tampalon and was arrested around 5:50 a.m.

He said that officials of Barangay Magsaysay in Cadiz City also helped locate the whereabouts of the suspect, who is the father of the victim’s stepfather.

The suspect was transported back to Cadiz City for the filing of rape with homicide charges.

Batusbatusan said the suspect was identified based on the circumstantial evidence and witnesses.

The 17-year-old victim, whose name was withheld, was last seen alive last Sunday.

She was then found naked and lifeless the following day, with a slash wound in the neck.

Her left ear was cut, and her fingers on both hands were chopped, according to Batusbatusan.

The victim also had other injuries on the body, an indication that the victim struggled, the police chief said.

Police recovered from the scene a bolo.

In a radio interview, the victim’s mother asked for justice for her daughter, saying she is willing to pursue the filing of a criminal complaint against the suspect.

Delfin has yet to be reached for comment.

In a statement, Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr. commended the police for the speedy arrest of the suspect.

“It is sad to note that such brutal crime happened beyond our control. We never condone such,” Escalante said.

The mayor said that it is up to the suspect to prove his innocence in the proper forum.

“Likewise, I now entrusted everything to our police to solve the case as soon as possible for the sake of justice for the bereaved family of the “hapless” victim,” Escalante said.