SEPTIC TANK KILLER SUSPECT REMORSED BUT FAMILY WANTS REVENGE”

By Tonton Alcos Antogop

 

“Nakonsensya ko sa akong gibuhat ” Jessie Medequillo said when he cried on his way back to a waiting police car after he was presented to the local media this afternoon in the Police Regional Office (PRO 7) headquarters in Camp Sergio Osmena, Sr. The erstwhile security guard reasoned he killed Thesa May Ygay to exact revenge on the father of the 14-year-old victim whom he calls his “pag-umangkon (niece).

 

 

 

He denied having an amorous relationship with Thesa but the elder sister of the victim said that prior to the killing of her sister, Medequillo whom they call as “Kuya” got jealous after Thesa had a boyfriend whom he threatened of harm. “Ang iyang uyab gibaharan sab ni Jessie. Niana si Jessie nga patyon sab niya ang uyab ni Thesa” the 17-year-old sister of the victim told the media.

Medequillo who supported the schooling of Thesa even when the girl was still 9 years old denied being jealous to Thesa’s boyfriend but he admitted killing the girl as he vented his anger to the victim because it was Thesa’s father who first threatened him. The threat came two days after Medequillo shaved the hair of Thesa last March 25. The shaving of the hair was recorded in the police blotter of the Danao City police station as the suspect allegedly got angry when Thesa roamed around with friends without asking his permission.

Thesa then left Danao City to hide in Lapu-Lapu City and when she came back Medequillo killed her. “Naglagot ko sa iyang amahan kay gihagad man ko niya ug patay,” Medequillo said. Medequillo who was arrested in Tabuelan town (not in Tuburan where he reportedly surrendered earlier ) said he stabbed Thesa for several times inside the guard house of Cogon Cruz Integrated School last April 8 before he dumped her in the school’s septic tank.

The killing happened past 7pm when the two of them were together in the school’s guardhouse where he reported for work. Before he was presented to the media, Medequillo had a self-confession to the crime and agreed to a reenactment in the presence of his assisting lawyer Atty. Noel Juni and Atty. Al Macapintal of the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) in Danao City. In the re-enactment, Medequillo demonstrated how he inserted a face towel inside the mouth of Thesa when the girl screamed when he started stabbing her.

As the victim’s voice would not be heared already, he stabbed her several times more and later wrapped the dead body with a “buri” mat. It took him several hours before he decided to dumped her body in the septic tank and fled afterward. He then hid in Tabuelan for days before he was arrested last Friday. Police Regional Director Brigadier General Debold Sinas clarified that contrary to earlier reports, Medequillo was arrested by a police tracker team in Tabuelan.

It was earlier reported that Medequillo surrendered to the Tuburan Police Station but Sinas explained the suspect was just brought to the Tuburan District Hospital for medical check-up after the arrest and the treatment of the suspect’s wound in the right hand. “Arrested gyud siya, gi track siya nahadlok siya nga mamatay siya kung dili siya mag surrender mao nga giadtoan siya.” Sinas described the killing of Thesa as a crime of passion.

“This is a classic case of a crime of passion. Isa ra ang suspect ani wala nay lain.” Asked for a reaction, Thesa’s sister wanted Medequillo’s death also to get even. “Gipatay man niya akong manghod mapatay pud unta na siya,” the sister said describing Medequillo as close to their family because of his help to Thesa. Everything has changed when Medequillo started his jealousy to her sister.

PNP medico-legal officer Benjamin Lara said that the victim suffered 34 wounds which indicated extreme anger of the assailant. The victim had 13 wounds in the neck and head, 11 incise wounds in her upper extremities, 7 stab wounds in her body, two defense wounds in her left hand and one defense wound in her right hand. Lara said there were deep stab wounds which were even enough to have killed the victim already but the perpetrator still continued in inflicting harm.

Murder charges are already being prepared against the suspect. The murder weapon was recovered along with the bloodied steel pipe, a pick mattock, and rock which had blood stains. Another security guard who was the reliever of the suspect first discovered the traces of blood in the crime scene prompting him to call the family of Ygay to report to the police which then discovered the decomposing body of the victim upon smelling the stench from the septic tank.

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