Suspect in 12-year-old girl’s rape-slay
A SON of a man arrested for the November 20 rape – slay of a 12 year-old girl in San Narciso, Quezon surrendered to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI)-Quezon on Thursday and claimed he is the culprit, not his father.
Accompanied by his relatives and a newsman, Allan Mendeja, 35, of Sitio Caghaligue, Bgy. Punta, San Narciso, Quezon turned himself in at around 4 p.m., said NBI- Quezon head, Chief Agent Dominador Villanueva.
Villanueva said Allan is a son of Artemio Mendeja, 66, a farmer/ fisherman who was earlier arrested and charged with rape with homicide by the San Narciso Police under Major Lope Liwanag.
Allan volunteered to execute an extrajudicial confession saying he was the real culprit and not his father.
“Ako po ang salarin, hindi si tatay,” said Allan when asked by Agent Ferdinand Dagdag, Villanueva’ s deputy who handles the case.
To support his claim, Allan also surrendered the bolo he allegedly used to kill the girl and the latter’s missing cellular phone.
The victim’ s body was found naked by her grandfather with deep hack wounds in the neck and body in Sitio Caghaligue, Bgy. Punta, San Narciso town at around 8 a.m. on November 20.
The girl, a Grade 7 student, left home at 6:30 a.m. to look for a signal as she had something to ask from her teacher, according to the grandfather.
Town police commander, Major Lope Liwanag said the girl, was last seen alive by her grandfather at 6:30 of Friday.
“Nagpaalam po siya na pupunta lang doon sa lugar na may signal ang cell phone dahil kailangan niyang mag text sa kanyang teacher. Pero 8 a.m. na ay hindi pa siya bumabalik kaya sinundan ko na siya para hanapin,” the grandfather told probers.
In a follow-up operation, elements of San Narciso Police Station under Major Liwanag were able to gather witnesses and some circumstantial evidence, including an alleged fresh scratch at the back portion of Artemio’s body and blood stains on his pants, prompting them to place him under arrest. He was detained and charged with rape with homicide before the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office.
Artemio denied the charges in a statement, saying he and his two sons were fishing in the ocean from 5 a.m. to 11 a.m. on the day the crime occurred.
