Palace dismayed over slay of 14-year-old boy

MANILA - Malacañang yesterday expressed dismay over the "disturbing" death of Reynaldo de Guzman, the 14-year-old who was last seen accompanying slain former University of the Philippines student Carl Angelo Arnaiz.

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) had already been instructed to carry out a thorough investigation and case build-up on De Guzman's killing.

On September 5, De Guzman was found dead in a creek in San Roque village in Gapan, Nueva Ecija. His body bore 30 stab wounds.

Abella assured that those behind the killing of the minor will be held liable.

"It is with profound dismay that we regard the disturbing death of 14-yearold Reynaldo de Guzman. The National Bureau of Investigation has already been ordered to conduct a thorough investigation and case build-up over the killing of the young boy Reynaldo," Abella told a press conference.

"We call on authori-

ties to bring the perpetrators of this suspicious crime with justice," he added.

De Guzman was last seen with Arnaiz, a 19-year-old former government scholar who was slain by police officers in a reported shootout in C3 Road in Caloocan City.

De Guzman and Arnaiz both went missing after they left their homes in Cainta, Rizal, on August 17 to buy midnight snacks. SunStar Philippines