MANILA, Philippines — Swedish authorities gave assurances to the Philippines that justice will be served for slain Filipina Mailyn Sinambong.
Sinambong, a 28-year-old mother of two children aged 10 and 4, was allegedly beaten to death by her 50-year-old Swedish husband Steve Abou Bakr Aalam.
Related Stories
Aalam has been taken into custody by Swedish authorities and will be charged with murder.
The Department of Foreign Affairs welcomed the assurances conveyed by Swedish prosecutor Malin Kühn in a meeting with Consul General Ma. Elena Algabre of the Philippine Embassy in Oslo.
They met in Stockholm, Sweden last Wednesday.
Algabre reported that the Swedish prosecutor assured her and the victim's aunt, Lugina Eliasen, that justice will be served.
"This assurance means so much not only to the loved ones Mailyn left behind but to all Filipinos who are mourning with them," Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said in a statement.
Algabre flew from Norway to Sweden earlier this week to look into the case of the Filipina and to make arrangements on the repatriation of her remains, which are the Karolinska Hospital in Stockholm.
According to Algabre, the Philippine Embassy will hire a lawyer to see how the Sinambong's mother Maria Monato, who is in Cebu, could secure custody of the victim's children.
The 10-year-old son is currently staying with his paternal uncle while the 4-year-old daughter is with a foster family that has been taking care of her since birth, the DFA said. — Patricia Lourdes Viray