After brutal murder of 16-year-old girl, police urge parents to monitor children closely

CEBU CITY, Philippines—The Lapu-Lapu City Police Office (LLCPO) is urging parents to always monitor their children.

Senior Superintendent Lemuel Obon, the director of the LLCPO, said that the brutal murder of Christine Silawan was a reminder to parents to be more aware of the lives of their children.

The 16-year-old church collector was found dead with half of her face skinned off in an empty lot in Barangay Bangkal, Lapu-Lapu City on Monday morning, March 11, 2019.

Read related story: Body of 16-year-old church collector whose face was skinned found in Lapu-Lapu City

Obon said that Christine’s mother told him that her daughter had no cellular phone that could have been used to communicate with them on the night of her death.

“If ing-ana nga walay cellphone, dapat naa gyod way to communicate sa mga bata,” said Obon.

Read related story: Netizens want death penalty for ‘monsters’ who killed Grade 9 student from Lapu

Obon understands that parents may allow their children to stay out late but he suggest that  parents should monitor closely the whereabouts of their children.

According to Obron, the mother trusted Christine even when she did not come home on Sunday night because she was used to her daughter staying at the home of her friends.

Upon hearing the news that a girl was found dead in Bangkal, the mother immediately looked for her daughter at the funeral home and positively identified the body.

Read related story: Church collector murder: Lapu police in pursuit of three suspected drug addicts 

The Grade 9 student served as a collector for the 6 p.m. Sunday mass at the Sacred Heart Parish before she was killed.

The closed-circuit television (CCTV) of the church revealed that she was with a fellow collector after the mass eating balut outside the church.

A witness told the police that three men, suspected to be drug users, raped and killed Christine in the empty lot.

Read related story: Lot where the body of church collector was found is a common ‘dating place’ of young couples

One of the suspects held her down, the other stabbed her with a knife, and the third skinned her face.

Obon said that they are led to believe a knife was used because of the lacerations in Christine’s body, although they found no remnants of any sharp objects in the area.

The body of Christine will undergo autopsy to identify if she was indeed raped before she was killed.

Obon said that no ‘normal’ person could have done such a brutal crime and urged the community to help look for the suspects.

“Dapat maglagot ta ani tanan. Kita tanan nga mga ginikanan ug naay mga anak, dapat masuko ta sa nagbuhat niini. Magtinabangay ta nga makit-an nato ni silang mga kriminal,” he said. /bmjo