PNP FILES MURDER RAPS VS 5 SUSPECTS IN BEAUTY QUEEN, ISRAELI BF SLAY CASE

The Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) has filed murder charges against five individuals allegedly involved in the gruesome killing of Pampanga beauty queen Geneva Lopez and her Israeli boyfriend, Yitshak Cohen in Tarlac..

Col. Thomas Valmonte, chief of the PNP-CIDG legal division,  on Thursday said cases for two counts of murder were files against five respondents, two of home are policemen, with the Department of Justice (DoJ).

Valmonte said the suspects had a meeting and planned the killing of Lopez and Cohen.

“There were at least two respondents who shot the victims. Then there was another who disposed of the bodies. We included in the complaint other people who took part in the planning,” Valmonte said.

Lopez, a Mutya ng Pilipinas-Pampanga 2023 candidate, and Cohen went missing after they went to Tarlac for a land transaction on June 21.

A day later, an abandoned burned vehicle was found in Bgy. Cristo Rey in Capas, Tarlac.

Lopez’s family confirmed the items recovered from the vehicle belonged to her.

Interior and Local Government chief Secretary Benhur Abalos on July 8 presented former policemen Michael Guiang and Rommel Abuzo, and civilian Jeffrey Santos as suspects.

Abalos said two more suspects identified only as “Dondon” and “Junjun” had surrendered to the authorities.

Lopez’s sister Joni, said they want justice for Geneva.

“Ang gusto po namin ay managot ang lahat ng sangkot,” she said.

Valmonte said the motive for the killing was land dispute.

 The CIDG legal chief said that based on investigation, the land in Tarlac was pawned by the respondents to the victims.  The suspects wanted to take back the land documents from the couple..

“It seems the victims didn’t want to return the documents because, of course, they had given money, so the money should be returned to them,” Valmonte said.