MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Thursday, January 16, that it is coordinating with the Philippine Embassy in Vienna to expedite the repatriation of the remains of slain Filipino Marvil Facturan-Kocjancic.
“The Philippine Embassy in Vienna, in collaboration with the Department of Foreign Affairs, and other related agencies, is working with Slovenian authorities for the immediate shipment of her remains to the Philippines upon completion of all requisite forensic processes,” the DFA said in a statement.
Facturan was killed in Slovenia during the holidays in December 2024 while with her husband, Mitja Kocjancic, whom she had met on social media in February 2024.
Her mother, Vilma Pila, said Facturan traveled to Slovenia to join her husband on Dec. 22, 2024.
In an interview with Teleradyo Serbisyo on Tuesday, January 14, Pila said the Philippine Embassy in Austria informed her of her daughter’s death on New Year’s Eve at 6:30 p.m.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in an interview on the same broadcast program that Facturan had died from multiple stab wounds following an argument with her husband.
“There’s no report suggesting she was killed for insurance money. The reports so far say they had an argument, and she suffered multiple stab wounds,” DFA Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said in a mix of English and Filipino.
Kocjancic has been identified as the primary suspect, and the DFA confirmed he is now under their custody. However, he is currently being held in a mental institution as he is reportedly recovering from a mental health condition.
“The problem under the law is that he might evade imprisonment and instead stay in a mental facility, as there are reports that he is recovering from a mental illness,” de Vega said in a mix of English and Filipino.
Pila shared that she had met her daughter’s husband before their wedding on July 29, 2024. Kocjancic had visited the Philippines on July 11, just days before Facturan’s birthday.
When she learned of her daughter’s death, Pila was shocked, recalling that Kocjancic had been kind and polite to their family.
“Wala po ako nakikitang yung bad side po sa kanyang attitude po (I didn’t notice any bad side to his attitude),” she said in the interview.
Pila tried to recall if her daughter had ever mentioned any issues with Kocjancic during their marriage, but she couldn’t remember any. She even knows that he helped her daughter find a job in Slovenia because it was Facturan's dream to work there.
She also described the situation as unimaginable, especially considering the social media posts where her daughter and Kocjancic appeared happy together.
“Wala naman po siyang naikwento na may problema po kasi kung makikita niyo sa mga post nila, sobrang saya nung pamilya nila eh,” Pila said.
(She didn’t mention any problems with her marriage because if you look at their posts, their family seemed really happy.)
“Natulala po ako nun, sabi ko ang saya saya po nila sa social media pero bakit ganito,” she added.
(I was stunned. I said to myself, "They seemed so happy on social media, so why did this happen?")
Pila called for justice and expressed her hope that Kocjancic would be imprisoned if it was proven that he killed her daughter.
The DFA condemned the killing and extended its condolences to Facturan's family.
De Vega said that they are in constant communication with the family and anticipate that the remains may be repatriated either this week or next week.