A 20-YEAR-OLD Grade 12 student who had been reported missing was discovered dead past 11 a.m. on Wednesday, January 31, 2024, in the mountain Cebu City barangay of Malubog.
His body was already starting to decompose.
An hour after the body was discovered, a certain Virginia Toray from Barangay Kasambagan, Cebu City, showed up and recognized the deceased as her son Lawrence Toray based on the jacket he was wearing that bore the North Face logo.
Virginia reported that her son had turned 20 last January 4 and was a Grade 12 student of Southwestern University.
The mother claimed that her son went missing on January 6 and that he was last seen in Barangay Busay crossing the road going to the Temple of Leah by himself based on the CCTV footage.
According to her, her son left the house that day after asking permission to take the exam, but did not return home.
As a result, they posted on social media that their son was missing and requested assistance from the public in their hunt.
“Nailhan naku siya sa iyang senina. Niadto man na siya sa eskwelahan sa buntag anang Enero 6 kay mo exam lagi, unya hapon nana siya niari sa Busay. Nakita namo sa CCTV nga niagi lang siya ra usa alas 7 sa gabii,” the mother said.
(I recognized him by his clothes. He went to school in the morning on January 6 because he had an exam, then in the afternoon he was in Busay. We saw him on CCTV passing by the area at 7 in the evening).
The victim was discovered by a woman who happened to be in the area to answer the call of nature.
His head was hanging from a tree and had a rope around his neck, raising suspicion that he committed suicide.
The woman quickly informed the people nearby and the barangay about her discovery.
According to Malubog barangay captain Dennis Dabuco, they will review the CCTV footage in the area to see if the victim had any companions.
He claimed that the victim’s shoes and bag were discovered next to his body.
To ascertain the precise cause of the victim’s death, the Malubog Police Community Precinct recommended having his body autopsied. (With TPT)
