Taxi driver wanted in rape-slay of call center agent nabbed

By Glazyl M. Jopson

BACOLOD CITY – A 39-year-old taxi driver was arrested at his home in Barangay III, Pontevedra, Negros Occidental, on Thursday for allegedly raping and killing a call center agent in Talisay City in January.

The suspect, wanted for rape with homicide, was identified as the No. 3 most wanted person in Negros Occidental, according to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group–Negros Island Region (CIDG-NIR).

The arrest was based on a warrant with no bail recommended issued by the Regional Trial Court Branch 53 in Bacolod City on July 7, 2025.

The suspect was linked to the death of 31-year-old Carl Kimberlyn Degabi of Barangay Mandalagan, Bacolod City, whose body was found in Barangay Matab-ang, Talisay City, on Jan. 12.

In a phone interview on Sunday, Police Major Rhazl Jim Jocson, deputy chief of the Talisay City Police Station, said the suspect was identified after authorities recovered an abandoned taxi in Bacolod a week after the victim’s body was discovered.

“This is based on circumstantial evidence and pieces of evidence recovered from the taxi, as well as when the driver went missing after the incident,” Jocson said.

He added that the suspect was not the registered owner of the taxi but had been operating it as a hired driver under a rental or boundary system.

Degabi reportedly left their house on the evening of Jan. 11 without informing her parents of her destination or whom she was meeting.

Jocson confirmed that the recovered taxi was the same one the victim had boarded prior to her death.

Degabi was found half-naked with mouth injuries in a remote area of Talisay City.

Jocson said initial reports indicated that the suspect fled to La Carlota City and Pulupandan, but police failed to apprehend him until the warrant was issued.

The victim’s family had previously called for justice and denied online accusations labeling her as a “scammer,” one of the angles police initially explored.

The family said there was no formal complaint filed regarding the claims and urged the public to stop spreading false information and to refrain from cruelty.

Jocson said they are awaiting additional details from the CIDG regarding the suspect’s arrest.