The reward money to anyone who can help identify the suspects behind the gruesome murder of 16-year-old girl in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu has now ballooned to P1.6 million.
In a press conference, Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza said that the city government will be offering P1-million cash reward to positive leads to the death of Christine Lee Silawan.
An unnamed American retiree based in Leyte offered a P500,000 while Police Regional Advisory Council-Central Visayas will give P100,000 to encourage witnesses to come forward and detail what they know, earlier reports told.
Radaza is calling on police for the immediate and swift resolution of the case.
Aside from the 30 stab wounds found on Silawan’s body, police medico legal personel said that her tongue and some parts of her throat were forcibly removed from her – including the esophagus, trachea or mouth piece, and muscles within her neck.
Though there is a possibility that an animal may have eaten Silawan’s throat and tongue, since her body was found 12 hours after she was killed, Lara said there were no signs that she was bitten.
“At front part nang neck niya and right side and part of the left side, wala na rin yung ini-examine natin. We noted yung trachea, yung daanan nang hangin, yung esophagus and yung entire muscular nang neck wala na, open na yung neck at nakita na yung neck vertebrae. Including the tongue, wala na rin,” Lara said.
Lara added that the suspects may have intentionally removed those parts from Silawan’s body to delay police from identifying those behind her murder and allow them to hide.
He said the killers may have used a special knife to remove the throat and tongue from Silawan’s body, citing it would be difficult to remove them using an ordinary weapon.
He admitted that even during autopsies, it is hard for them to remove the specific parts that were missing from Christine’s body, including the skin from her face.
