The manhunt operations against suspects in the massacre of four members of a family at Gardenville Subdivision, Brgy. Tangub, Bacolod City, yielded a positive result on Friday, April 9, following the arrest and confession of one of the perpetrators.
A suspect, identified by the police as Christian Tulot, who was arrested April 7 in Salvador Benedicto, Negros Occidental, admitted his participation in the crime, Maj. Joery Puerto, who is the Station 8 commander of the Bacolod City Police Office, said.
Several hours before Tulot was arrested, the police discovered the decomposing bodies of Jocelyn Espinosa-Nombre, 59; her elder sister, Jemma, 69; Michael Espinosa, 35; and his six-year-old daughter, in the family residential compound.
Initial police investigations showed that the victims succumbed to head injuries, from being hit with a hammer.
Police probers aired suspicions that the victims may have been dead for about three days. No signs of forcible entry were noted, the police added.
A certain Joel Espinosa, who was linked by Tulot to the crime, is now under the custody of Police Station 8, after he was picked up by the police to answer the allegations hurled against him.
Joel is the brother of Jocelyn and Jemma, while Tulot is their nephew.
The arrest of Tulot in Salvador Benedicto town yielded two sachets of suspected shabu, the police said. Puerto said the massacre may have been related to illegal drugs.
Jonel Nombre, the husband of Jocelyn, claimed in a radio interview that Tulot is a drug user.
Aside from Joel, Tulot also linked a certain Bro, a drug pusher, to the crime, the police said. – GB
