CEBU CITY, Philippines — The security guard who went missing for five days and was found dead in a vacant lot in Sitio Banaba, Barangay Guinsay, Danao City, Cebu, might have been shot dead.
This was the conclusion of Police Senior Master Sergeant Reynante Manulat, of the Danao City police, after the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) team checked on the body of Mario Buendia Martel, 34, and found bullet wounds on the victim’s head and back.
The body of Martel from Sitio Kabayabsan, Barangay Cambanay of the city was already in an advanced state of decomposition when found by Danao City police on Thursday, January 30, 2020.
At that time, SOCO could still not determine the possible cause of Martel’s death as his body was already infested with maggots when it was recovered, said Manulat.
On Saturday morning, Feb. 1, 2020, Manulat said they found that Martel had gunshot wounds at the back of his head and at the back of his body.
Manulat said they will do a follow-up operation especially since there is a possibility that Martel was a victim of summary execution (salvaged).
He said they are still determining the possible motive of the killing. Manulat said the family of the victim said they know no one who has a grudge against Martel. The victim also did not tell them of anyone he was in conflict with.
Manulat said they are also verifying information that Martel was allegedly involved with illegal drugs. /rcg