Caloocan cops protest speculation linking them to boy’s slay
Caloocan City police chief Senior Superintendent Jemar Modequillo said his men should not be easily linked to the killing of 14-yearold Reynaldo “Kulot” De Guzman who was found dead with multiple stab wounds in Gapan, Nueva Ecija on Tuesday.
Modequillo made the statement in reaction to speculation made by Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) chief Persida Acosta.
Acosta had said that De Guzman was most likely killed by Caloocan police officers so he could no longer testify in the killing of 19-year-old Carl Angelo Arnaiz, the former University of the Philippines (UP) student who was shot dead by Caloocan police after an alleged shootout.
De Guzman was last seen with Arnaiz.
“That is her interpretation kasi papaano natin ma-conclude na dito nangyari sa Caloocan na hindi naman sila nag-surface dito. Actually, there are some questions if we initiated some investigation regarding the death of alias Kulot,” Modequillo said.
“Kulot (or) De Guzman was first seen in Cainta and last seen in Nueva Ecija,” he added.
Police had claimed they pursued Arnaiz after receiving a complaint from a taxi driver that the 19-year-old boy had robbed him.
Autopsy results, however, showed Arnaiz’s body bore some torture marks. Like 17-year-old Kian delos Santos, Arnaiz was apparently kneeling when shot by the police.
Arnaiz was found by his parents in a funeral home in Caloocan City 10 days after he went missing.
De Guzman, on the other hand, was found with a total of 28 stab wounds in a creek in Gapan. His head was wrapped with packaging tape.
Based on initial autopsy report of PAO, De Guzman was killed at least 24 hours before his remains were thrown into the creek.
Modequillo said Acosta should not jump to conclusions and link the killings of the two teenagers.
“What we said was that Kulot and Carl were last seen together in Cainta. They have many friends and there was a lot of talk about a hold-up. What if Kulot chose to go with someone else and Carl struck out on his own?” he said.