Metro Manila police still waiting for toxicology report on Dacera case

MANILA, Philippines — The National Capital Region Police Office is still awaiting results of the toxicology report on the flight attendant who allegedly fell victim to a rape-slay in a Makati City hotel to determine whether or not alcohol intoxication as among possible angles in the case, it said Thursday.

To recall, Police Gen. Debold Sinas, PNP chief, had asserted in a press briefing that he believes her death was a rape-slay, citing evidence he said the PNP could not yet share. 

Speaking in an interview aired over dzMM TeleRadyo, Police Brig. Gen. Vicente Danao, NCRPO director, said that Metro Manila police were still open to the possibility that this may not be the case after all. 

“It could be a cause, heavy drinking coupled with illegal drugs. It can also be caused by a party drug because based on what we saw, it is a rave party that took place that night. She really did have an aneurysm, that is what the doctors I know have said. That would be one of the causes, heavy drinking coupled with drugs, especially party drugs. A rupture of the blood vessels is possible,” he said.

"So nonetheless, that should not be a reason for us to stop the investigation because it is important to know what could have been the cause of her death," he also said.

READ: What we know so far: Death of flight attendant Christine Dacera

Friends and hotel staff reportedly found her unconscious body in a hotel bathtub the night after a New Year's Eve party, and rushed her to a hospital, where she passed away. She was only 23 years old. 

With nine suspects still at large at the time, Sinas classified the case as "solved" after three turned themselves in—a label that Danao himself contested. 

The PNP chief later issued an ultimatum for the remaining suspects: turn yourself in within 72 hours, or we will hunt you down with force. The government's human rights commission opposed this, reminding state forces to follow their own rules. 

"I was not really convinced when I read the documents but [Makati police] already filed it. They filed the case because police were eager to file it. But for me, honestly, speaking, the complaint was still half-baked, but that wasn't a reason for us to stop the investigation altogether," Danao also said in mixed Filipino and English. 

'No evidence yet from PNP to prove sexual assault'

In a separate interview aired over CNN Philippines’ "The Source", Prosecutor General Benedicto Malcontento disclosed that the national police has only submitted a medico-legal report and death certificate of Dacera thus far, days after her death was first reported.

“We cannot ascertain at this point in time whether there is crime or none,” he added in a mix of English and Filipino.

“At this point in time, the pieces of evidence are not sufficient for us to file any charges, any case for that matter so we cannot file homicide murder rape with homicide with the existing evidence presented so far by the PNP and their witnesses,” the prosecutor general added.

This came after Malcontento confirmed that state prosecutors “resolved to refer the case for further investigation and to release" the three suspects from detention due to "a need to conduct preliminary investigation of the case.”

Days after news of Dacera's death first broke, not much is clear about the circumstances of her tragic passing.

READ: Prosecutor general: PNP has not yet submitted evidence to prove sexual assault in Dacera case

— with reports from Kristine Joy Patag

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