MANILA, Philippines - A 17-year-old Filipina supposedly mistaken for a transgender was allegedly killed by an Australian tourist last week.
According to reports, the accused, 42-year-old Ali Ali, confessed to killing teenager Alona Alvarez “in self-defense.”
Ali, who came from Melbourne, reportedly sent Alvarez, whom he met via online chat, A$50,000 so that she would pick him up from the airport.
The pair reportedly met in Dipolog City for the first time two days before the incident happened.
From the airport, the two reportedly checked in at Antonio Pension House in Dipolog City on Jan. 28.
On Jan. 30, at around 4 p.m., Alvarez was found dead by employees inside a motel room. She was reportedly naked and bleeding, and had lost most of her teeth.
In a separate report, police investigator Ronald Dingas cited a police autopsy, which found Alvarez as having suffered brain hemorrhage, leading to her death by acute respiratory failure.
“Her face was so unrecognizable and horribly disfigured. The mortician had a hard time,” Dingas was quoted as saying.
“She suffered a very brutal death. It’s too much,” he said.
Investigators said they found sex toys and marijuana in the room where Alvarez was found.
According to an ABS-CBN report, Ali said he and the victim got into a fight when he purportedly mistook her for a transgender. The victim then expressed her anger by biting his penis. This led Ali to punch her and hit her with a shoe several times.
A separate report quoted Ali as saying that he did it out of self-defense and that his “mind went blank.”
Ali was reportedly arrested in Dumaguete City earlier this week while trying to escape to Manila. He is now facing murder charges.