Police: Man found dead with skinned face in Carmen believed to be person with mental health issues

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The man found dead with his entire face skinned at a grassy area in Barangay Fuente of the northern Cebu town of Carmen was allegedly the person with mental illness previously seen roaming in the barangay.

Police Captain Roger Quijano, chief of the Carmen Police Station, said they were still determining the identity of the victim as no one in the barangay could verify who the man was.

However, some residents told the police that based on the shirt worn by the victim, he was the mentally ill person who had been seen roaming the streets of the barangay but who they believed was not from their village.

A farmer identified as Vicente Sugarol, a resident of Barangay Fuente, found the victim’s body at around 7 a.m. today, Friday, January 10, and immediately reported it to the police.

Quijano said that when they arrived in the area, the man was found lying on his back with both his hands tied with a rope. His entire face, neck and ears were skinned.

He said the body was already starting to decompose when found, which indicated that he could have been dead for more that 48 hours.

“Dako gyud siguro og kalagot ning nipatay kay tibuok nawong man gyud,” said Quijano.

(The killer must have been very angry with the victim given that the entire face was skinned.)

Quijano said the man might have been killed elsewhere and his body only dumped in the area where it was found.

He said the body would undergo an autopsy  to determine the cause of death.

Quijano said they would be coordinating with the police in the nearby Danao City to find out if the man was from that city./elb