Another decomposing body found at the Economic Highway in Barangay Cabug, Bacolod City, late Tuesday has been identified as that of a Silay resident who had previously been arrested for drugs, the police said Wednesday, May 3.
The Bacolod police is creating a special task force to determine who are behind the recent dumping of three bodies and body parts in Bacolod City.
Col. Noel Aliño, acting Bacolod police director, said the body found Tuesday was identified as that of a Silay City resident who was allegedly abducted from his home by four men on April 18.
The victim was previously arrested for illegal drugs and imprisoned, Aliño said.
Capt. Rondyl Tapang, Bacolod police station 9 chief, said the body placed in a sack was found in a culvert drainage at the Economic Highway by patrolling policemen at 5:50 p.m. Tuesday because of the foul odor it was emitting.
The family of the victim said he was a 43-year-old male former hardware driver and had been arrested in a 2015 drug buy bust operation in Silay, Tapang added.
The victim was identified through his teeth, height, and facial and body structure, he said.
The body had no missing body parts, he added.
The body was the third discovered along the Economic Highway in three days.
The decomposing bodies of two persons who were beyond recognition were discovered along the Economic Highway in Barangay Felisa on Sunday, about 700 meters away from where the third body was found Tuesday.
The police are determining if the killing of the three were related.
Aliño said DNA tests will have to be conducted to determine if the remains found in Barangay Felisa are those of two missing La Castellana residents.
The body found Tuesday was the fourth fatality in Bacolod since Aliño assumed his post as city police director on April 18.
Call center agent Alex Dolorosa, 35, an organizer of the BPO Industry Employees’ Network, was found dead with 15 stab wounds on April 24.
PMaj. Nestor Bacuyag, Bacolod police spokesman, at a press conference Wednesday said the creation of the special task force that will be led by Aliño is awaiting approval of the Western Visayas PNP regional office.
Asked if the situation is alarming, Bacuyag said except for the discovery of the bodies the city’s crime statistics are very low and Bacolod is “generally peaceful”.
Police visibility has been increased as a deterrent against crimes, he said.*