BACOLOD CITY – Another sack containing decomposing remains of a person was found along the Economic Highway in Purok Ipil-ipil, Barangay Cabug here on Tuesday, May 2.
A SACK containing decomposing human remains was found dumped in a concrete pipe along the Economic Highway in Barangay Cabug, Bacolod City on Tuesday, May 2. (Photo courtesy of Police Station 9)
Police Capt. Rondyll Tapang, head of Police Station 9, said the police responded after receiving a report regarding a nauseating stench emanating from the area.
Upon checking, the police found a sack dumped inside a concrete pipe in the grassy portion of the area.
The following day, a family from Silay City, Negros Occidental, identified the remains based on the victim's structure, according to Tapang.
However, Tapang said the family requested not to disclose the name of the 42-year-old male victim for their safety.
Tapang said the victim reportedly went missing on April 18, according to his family.
He was arrested in a buy-bust operation in 2015. But the family is not privy on the victim’s case, Tapang said.
Prior to this, skeletons of an unidentified person and a decomposing body of another unidentified person sealed in a sack were also found dumped in a concrete pipe along the Economic Highway in Barangay Felisa on April 30.
Police Col. Noel Aliño, Bacolod City police acting director, has earlier ordered the police to coordinate with neighboring police stations in the province and look for missing individuals to aid them in the investigation.
With these two incidents, Tapang said they are looking for an ideal location to put up a detachment for the deployment of personnel to prevent the same incident.
Meanwhile, the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) is planning to create a task group that will focus on probing these incidents.
In a press briefing on Wednesday, May 3, Police Major Nestor Bacuyag, BCPO spokesperon, said they will make a recommendation to the Police Regional Office (PRO)-Western Visayas.
Bacuyag said they are probing if the two incidents can be linked, considering the manner in the way the remains were dumped in the same area.
Notwithstanding these cases, Bacuyag said the crime statistic of the BCPO is very low, stressing that Bacolod City is generally peaceful.
Bacuyag said the recent cases can be considered “isolated.”
When asked if there could be vigilante groups here, Bacuyag said they do not discount the possibility.
"We are looking into that. But, for now, we cannot give a statement relative to this if they exist," he added.