BY JEN BAYLON
ILOILO City – The recent massive fire incident in Barangay Salvacion Habog-Habog in Molo district has taken a disturbing turn as new evidence suggests that the three victims found dead may have been murdered before the fire broke out.
Fire Chief Superintendent Jerry Candido, regional director of the Bureau of Fire Protection Region 6, said their investigation revealed there were at least four points of fire origin, indicating a deliberate act.
The early morning fire on Dec. 16 killed Elizabeth Jetano (65), Niel Jetano (31), and Rain Gabriel Jetano (10), found together in their home. Destroying around 70 structures, the blaze also left an estimated P6.6 million in property damage.
Candido said the size of the house was also not substantial enough to prevent the victims from escaping.
He added that it would have been impossible for the victims not to have noticed the fire and failed to call for help, especially with an adult present in the house at the time.
Additionally, authorities found a head wound sustained by one of the victims, where the skull was fractured and the brain exposed. But investigators are also considering the possibility that heavy debris fell on the victim, causing the injury.
Autopsies will be conducted on the bodies of the victims to determine the nature of their deaths, whether they died due to the fire, smoke inhalation, or any other form of violence before the blaze.
Witnesses claimed to authorities that before the fire, Barangay Kagawad Nestor Jetano’s two children were in a heated argument, and one allegedly threatened to kill the family and set their home ablaze./PN
