Mother, 16, stabs daughter dead

CEBU, Philippines - A 16-year-old mother stabbed her one year and nine month-old daughter dead inside their house in Sitio Kalingking, Barangay Saavedra, Moalboal, at 5:30 in the afternoon last Sunday after she reportedly got irked upon seeing rashes on her daughter’s skin.

The mother also stabbed herself in the chest after killing her baby using a 12-inch long kitchen knife.

The baby was rushed to the Moalboal Health Center but was declared dead on arrival by the attending physician, Dr. Cesar Mahinay.

The mother was taken to the Badian District Hospital but was later referred to the Don Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City for an immediate operation.

According to the suspect’s aunt, the mother reportedly acted strange a few days before the incident happened. The suspect will be subjected to a stress debriefing by the Municipal Social Welfare and Development to determine such speculation.

 PO2 Rommel Gako, Moalboal investigator, told The FREEMAN that the father of the suspect was gathering seashells at the shore for dinner while her 73-year-old grandmother was preparing at their dirty kitchen when the incident happened.

The baby was sleeping on the floor inside their house when the suspect allegedly took a knife from the kitchen and stabbed the baby five times.

“Wa gyud kuno nihilak ang bata pagdunggab diha na nabantayan ang insidente nga ang inahan na ang nisyagit,(The baby reportedly did not cry when she was stabbed. They just noticed the incident when the mother screamed.)” Gako said in a phone interview.

The grandmother ran inside the house and saw the suspect and the baby in a pool of blood. She then called her neighbors for help.

According to the suspect, she was aware when she stabbed her daughter dead but she could no longer control herself.

“Nakatimaan man ko pero ambot kay mura man ko ug wala na’y kaluoy gusto ko’ng muhilak pero wala may mugawas nga luha sa akong mata,(I was aware but I don’t know why I seemed merciless. I want to cry but no tears fell from my eyes.)” the mother told The FREEMAN.

According to the suspect’s aunt, the mother got irked of the skin rashes she saw.

“Akong gitambagan nga ingon ana gyud na kay gangipon man ang bata pero mawala ra na…paminaw ko nayawaan gyud siya atong higayona,(I advised her that rashes are normal because the baby was teething but it will disappear soon. I think she was possessed by an evil spirit at that time.)” the aunt said.

The aunt also narrated that the suspect was impregnated by her own uncle while she was staying in Manila.

The suspect stayed with her mother in Manila at that time. When she got pregnant, she decided to go to Tuburan town where she gave birth to a baby girl. They then eventually transferred to Moalboal last August.

“Amo lang naman to gikalimtan nga namabdos ra pud siya sa akong igsuon aron walay samok,(We just tried to forget about her being impregnated by my brother to avoid trouble.)” the aunt said.

The family of the suspect has not yet decided if they will file appropriate charges against her. (FREEMAN)