Burning body of a man found in vacant lot in Borbon town

CEBU CITY, Philippines -The body of a still unidentified man was set on fire in a secluded area in Borbon town in northeastern Cebu.

Motorists passing by the area found the burning body in a vacant lot in Sitio Lunas in Barangay Cadaruhan at about 3 p.m. on Friday, January 1.

The victim remains unidentified to date.

In a spot report, Borbon police said that a motorcycle-for-hire driver saw something that was burning about 30 meters away from the road when he passed by the area at around 3 p.m. and while he was on his way to the nearby Sitio Camugaw.

The driver, who came from Sitio Tabaynglawm, was under the impression that what he saw was burning wood and did not bother to check on it.

A group of bikers that also passed by the area saw the body of a man that was set on fire.  The victim was said to be wearing a hood that covered his face.

Since the area was isolated and did not have telco signal, the discovery of the body was reported to the Borbon police only three hours later or at about 6 p.m.

Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) arrived in the area at about 8:39 p.m. to process the body.  They found 15 pieces of fired cartridge case, a gallon containing gasoline, and one of the slippers believed to be worn by the victim.

In his report, Police Lieutenant Samuel Gerra Negro said that the body will be subjected to autopsy to determine the cause of death. / dcb