- Police to reopen probe into Saldua disappearance and Bragas rape-slay
THE REGIONAL police director ordered a revisit of the investigations into the disappearance of Justine Mae Saldua and the rape-slay of architect Blanche Marie Bragas, which are classified as “cold cases.”
Saldua, a house help employed by former Toril Police Station chief Major Michael Uyanguren, vanished under mysterious circumstances on Aug. 28, 2023, in Lubugan, Toril, Davao City.
Uyanguren has an ongoing administrative case in connection to the case and is now assigned to the Regional Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit.
Meanwhile, Bragas was found raped and murdered in a banana plantation in Dacudao, Calinan District, last May.
Police Regional Office XI director, Brigadier General Nicolas Torre III, announced on Tuesday that he received a request from individuals to supposedly reexamine the circumstances surrounding both cases.
He did not identify the individuals who made the request.
When asked why he was inclined to review these cases, Torre responded, “Have any charges been filed? Were these cases truly closed and concluded? I’m not aware of any filed cases, so we’re still looking into them. We refer to these as ‘cold cases.'”
He added, “Perhaps these cases have only recently come to your attention because they are high-profile, but they are indeed ‘cold cases.’ The PNP allocates funds for investigating such cases, and to utilize those funds properly, we need to apply them to these cold cases.”
On Bragas case
“There are sectors na nagre request nun pero hindi ko pa nga nasimulan (There are sectors that requested but Haven’t started it),” Torre said.
On Wednesday’s Davao Peace and Security Press Corps press conference at the Royal Mandaya Hotel, Captain Hazel Tuazon, the spokesperson of the Davao City Police Office, said they could not question the order of Torre.
“We will support the instructions of our Police Regional Office XI,” she said.
The Special Investigation Task Group (SITG) Bragas announced previously that the rape-slay case was already considered officially closed.
On June 5, 2023, a case for rape with homicide was already filed at the City Prosecutor Office XI, Hall of Justice, Ecoland, Davao City against suspects Dennis Roy Pilapil Panzan, Kent Laurence Melegreto Espinosa, Renato Ali Bayansao, and one John Doe with pre-evaluation number PE-XI-02-INV-23-F-0076 Investigation sheet Nr. XI-02-INV-23-F-4000 under Assistant City Prosecutor Rocarma S Nuesca.
Lobiano was killed while being served with an arrest warrant. Espinosa and Panzan were reportedly abducted and remains missing as of this time.
