ILOILO CITY — After more than two months of delay, 10 suspects are facing murder charges for the October 2021 death of Claire Diergos, the 36-year-old single mother and businesswoman in Iloilo.
This was after the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) filed murder charges before the Iloilo Provincial Prosecutors Office Wednesday, January 5.
Police Colonel Gilbert Gorero, IPPO director, said eight of the 10 suspects have been identified while two are unidentified.
However, the police will not name the identified suspects of the very high-profile crime.
“We are not releasing the names. It will be up to the prosecutors if the names will be released,” Gorero told Manila Bulletin.
The police can only say that some of the suspects including the mastermind are members of the same family.
To recall, Diergos was found dead inside her abandoned vehicle in Sta. Barbara town last October 26, 2021. But police believe that she was killed at her house in neighboring Pavia town.
Gorero expressed satisfaction that IPPO’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) was finally able to file the murder charges.
But Gorero admitted that it was a very tough case to handle since the circumstances of Diergos’ death included two crime scenes: the victim’s house in Pavia town and the abandoned vehicle in Sta. Barbara town.
The biggest obstacle was also getting witnesses to legally stand by their statements and not back out.
“It’s very good that our witnesses finally found the courage to testify,” Gorero added.