CASE CLOSED. The Police Regional Office in Bicol (PRO-5) announces on Wednesday (Nov. 2, 2022) the quick resolution of the rape-slay of an 18-year-old student in Pili, Camarines Sur. Brig. Gen. Rudolph Dimas, PRO-5 chief (in photo), lauded the dedication and tenacity demonstrated by the police team which led to the quick identification and arrest of the suspect. (File photo)
LEGAZPI CITY – The Police Regional Office in Bicol (PRO-5) reported on Wednesday the quick resolution of the killing of an 18-year-old student in Pili, Camarines Sur after the arrest of the suspect, who owned up to the crime.
Lt. Col. Maria Luisa Calubaquib, in a statement, said suspect Reymark Belleza, a pedicab driver, was hired by the victim, Irish Mae Maguigad Payonga, on the day she attended an event at the Church of God World Missions - Southern Luzon Region at the Capitol Convention Center in Barangay Cadlan.
"The arrest was made through the special task force created that conducted a comprehensive investigation on the incident. The team was able to secure CCTV footages which paved the way for the identification of the suspect," she said.
The victim, of Camaligan town and senior high school student at Ateneo de Naga University, was first reported missing on Oct. 28.
Payonga boarded a public transport in Naga City going to Pili, Camarines Sur, and took a pedicab heading to the capitol where the event was about to happen.
At about 5:44 p.m. on Friday, she called her mother to inform that she would be home by 8 p.m. and would be fetched by her uncle.
The family, however, lost contact with the victim after the call.
On Oct. 31, two minors found a body in a secluded area on Jacob St., Central Park Subdivision in Barangay Cadlan at about 3 p.m., Calubaquib said.
She said the body, which was already in a state of decomposition, was covered in cement and soil.
"Operatives of Camarines Sur Police Provincial Office headed by officer-in-charge (OIC) Col. Julius Caesar Domingo, proceeded in the area with the family of the victim who positively identified the cadaver as their daughter," Calubaquib said.
She said on Tuesday, the suspect was invited by the police for questioning, where he made an extra-judicial confession about the incident in the presence of one of the investigating team and a legal counsel from the Public Attorney’s Office.
Recovered from the crime scene were a denim jacket, a pair of sneakers, a wristwatch, necklace with pendant, a red sling bag with a hair clip, and two used condoms.
Police said the suspect took the victim's cellphone and had it reformatted in a computer shop which was located with the help of the CCTV clips.
The suspect will be charged with robbery and rape with homicide. (PNA)
