2 men nabbed for slay of woman in Zamboanga City

ZAMBOANGA CITY—Police authorities here on Friday said two men were arrested for the killing of the 25-year-old bar guest relations officer, whose decomposing body was found on a vacant lot in front of the National Power Corporation (Napocor) in Barangay Sangali here on Thursday.

Chief Inspector Chester Natividad, the chief of the Zamboanga City Police Station 3, said suspects Jeffrey Damas Pocong and Elton Jay Taub Francia were arrested on Friday morning. Two other suspects, identified as Jerson Francia and Loyut Andung remained at large.

Natividad said they were able to identify the men in the killing of April Rose Villanueva based on witnesses’ account.

“Villanueva was naked and her head was smashed,” Natividad said. The victim might have been raped, he said, but they were still waiting for the family’s permission so that an autopsy could be conducted.

Villanueva, a native of RT Lim town in Zamboanga Sibugay, came to the city three months ago to look for work, according to Natividad.

She ended up as a guest relations officer in one of the videoke bars instead and had allegedly been telling people she was an anti-drug agent.

“We presumed that the suspects thought she was an asset or an intelligence operative, so they decided to kill her,” Natividad said.