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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Luzon devider School principal arrested for murder of pregnant teacher

School principal arrested for murder of pregnant teacher

Published Jul 15, 2026 05:44 pm
BANGUED, Abra – Police have arrested a 56-year-old public school principal over the fatal shooting of a seven-month pregnant teacher and her unborn child last May Tayum, Abra.
Police said the suspect was arrested inside his office in a school in Lagangilang, Abra.
Authorities said a witness positively identified the principal as the gunman who fled the crime scene aboard a motorcycle after the attack.
Investigators said the suspect was the back rider of a motorcycle driven by another man when he shot Maria Elaine Besas Valencia, 36, on May 8. The driver remains unidentified and is still being hunted by police.
The killing was allegedly motivated by the suspect’s fear that Valencia was preparing to file criminal charges against him after she learned that her daughter was allegedly in a relationship with the suspect since she was 12-years-old.
Police Capt. Cerel Gaspili, chief of the Tayum Municipal Police Station, said they believe the suspect wanted to silence the victim before she could pursue legal action.
Valencia, a resident of Barangay Pawa, Lagangilang, and a teacher in Taguig City, was onboard a motorcycle driven by her husband on their way to a bus terminal here with relatives on a separate motorcycle when they were ambushed by two motorcycle-riding gunmen in Barangay Bumagcat, Tayum.
The suspects fled and Valencia sustained multiple bullet wounds. She was taken to a hospital in Bangued before being transferred to a medical facility in Bantay, Ilocos Sur, where she and her unborn child were declared dead.
Manhunt operations for the other suspect ang follow-up investigation are ongoing.

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Principal Deaths Murder Lagangilang Teacher Crime Shooting
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