BY MA. THERESA LADIAO
ILOILO City – A 56-year-old woman was found dead in a vacant lot behind a mall in Barangay Bolilao, Mandurriao district yesterday afternoon. Her spouse has been the initial target of suspicion.
Police authorities were called to the location following a distress call from two security guards who wanted to pick up some papaya fruit in the vicinity.
Emelyn Lasa was a resident of the barangay and a nursing aide at West Visayas State Medical Center.
She had an injury at the back of her neck believed to be due to hacking, bruises on the arms and was missing some fingers based on preliminary observation.
With the initial investigation showing signs of foul play, Lasa’s remains will undergo a postmortem examination to ascertain her cause of death.
According to Lasa’s child, identified as “Che Che,” the victim and her husband had an argument the night before, with the latter allegedly inebriated. The couple has also reportedly faced barangay officials before to settle fights due to jealousy.
Che Che told the authorities that her mother was last seen alive together with Lasa’s husband around 6 or 7 a.m. yesterday.
The husband reportedly surrendered last night in a barangay in Iloilo province and is currently under police custody. There is no confirmation yet on whether the husband admitted to the killing.
With these, the investigators are looking into the victim’s and her husband’s relationship dynamics, looking into potential conflicts or motives that may have contributed to the unfortunate conclusion, among other possible motives in the killing. The police are closely examining the locations and behavior of the husband before the discovery of the body./PN
