Missing caretaker found dead inside hole of traditional toilet in Tudela town

This was the freshly cemented hole of a traditional toilet where the body of 40-year-old Marlon Belarmino was found in a coconut plantation in Tudela town. | Contributed photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines —A sister of a missing caretaker said she never stopped looking for him, after she dreamed of him several times, where he told her to continue looking for him and that he was just nearby.

This dreams prompted her to travel to Tudela town in Camotes Islands in northern Cebu from her hometown in Baybay, Leyte on October 30 to seek help from the Tudela town mayor to look for her brother who had been missing since October 24.

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Missing caretaker

Her brother, Marlon Belarmino, who is a native of Baybay, Leyte and who worked as a caretaker of a 10-hectare coconut plantation in Sitio Canmanooc, Barangay Villahermosa in Tudela town.

Tudela Town Mayor Greman “Jojo” Solante told Lawyer Ruphil Bañoc in an interview during his Straight to the Point program in dyHP this morning, November 4, that the sister continued to look for her missing brother because he had let her dream of him several times.

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The body of the victim is being retrieved from the hole of a traditional toilet where he was thrown wrapped in two sacks. | Contributed photo via Paul Lauro

Dreams and don’t stop looking for him message

“Nitug-an sab kini sa iyang nasayran gikan sa igsoong babaye sa biktima nga kanunay kini gipadamgo sa biktima ug adunay mensahe nga: ‘Pangitaa ko ninyo, naa ra ko sa duol,’ said Solante.

(He also told dyHP about what he learned from the sister of the victim that he would often dream of the victim, leaving her this message: ‘Look for me, I am just nearby.’)

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Team formed to look for missing caretaker

Mayor Solante said with this they decided to form a team made up of police, some residents of Tudela, those at the barangay and emergency responders to look for the missing caretaker in the 10-hectare coconut plantation.

On November 3, as they were about to call it a day searching in the plantation, one of those who searched, who had a cow to raise looked for grass and tree leaves so that he could feed his cow  when he would go home.

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Members of the Tudela Police join the search for the missing caretaker in Barangay Villahermosa, Tudela Town in Camotes Islands. | Contributed photo via Paul Lauro

Hole where body was found

It was there that he stumbled upon loose soil, and in further inspection found a freshly cemented part of what was once a hole of a traditional toilet.

He then shouted to the other members of the search party, who then dug up the freshly cemented hole and there they found the body of Marlon Belarmino, who was wrapped inside two sacks. 

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Persons of interest

Mayor Solante said that they already had persons of interest and testimonies of witnesses who saw the victim with three others on the last time that he was seen alive.

Solante said that they were turning over what they knew about the killing to the police, who would conduct a deeper investigation on the crime.

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To be autopsied

He also said that they had yet to conduct an autopsy on the victim to know how he was killed. This was because the body was stored in a morgue yesterday evening who had no power.

He said that the team would go back to the morgue to autopsy the victim.

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