Contributed photos courtesy of DYHP via Paul Lauro
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The 19-year-old woman, who had been missing since Sunday, Feb. 25 and whose family had been urging authorities to help them locate her whereabouts, was found dead.
The lifeless body of Niña Fuentes Arpon was discovered along the Mactan Channel, within the vicinity of Shell Island in Cebu City on Tuesday, Feb. 27 — or two days after she went missing.
Arpon’s body was recovered by personnel of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) who first spotted the corpse washed up on portions of Shell Island’s docks.
READ: Missing 60-year-old sailor found after a month lost at sea
Relatives and close friends then eventually positively identified the body as that of Arpon, by recognizing the polo shirt and black wristband around her arm.
The victim’s family asked help from authorities last Monday, Feb. 26 to locate her whereabouts.
She was last seen walking on the Lapu-Lapu City side of the Marcelo Fernan Bridge past midnight last Sunday, based on surveillance footage that concerned citizens shared.
Arpon was a college student at the Cebu Technological University in Consolacion (CTU-Consolacion).
READ: Missing man found stabbed to death in Batangas
Her family also sought assistance from lawyer Ruphil Bañoc in his Straight to the Point program of Cebu-based radio station dyHP in trying to find Arpon.
During the program, one of her cousins, Rilbert Pielago, revealed that somebody informed the family of Arpon’s bag left along Marcelo Fernan Bridge last Saturday.
Inside her bag were her school ID and her cellphone, which led the finder to contact her relatives to tell them of their findings.
If you or someone you know needs help, you may call the following hotlines:
TAWAG PAGLAUM:
0939 937 5433
0939 936 5433
0927 654 1629
HOPELINE Crisis Hotline
2919 (toll-free for Globe and TM subscribers)
1158
0917-558-4673
8-804-4673