Man faces murder raps for killing teen

Manila Assistant Chief Prosecutor Romeo Pozo has approved the filing of murder charges against a man who allegedly stabbed dead a 14-year-old high school student last Tuesday in Sta. Cruz, Manila.

No bail was recommended for Jon Estipular, 31, who is currently detained at the Manila jail for the death of Ryan Oblea, a first-year high school student of Manuel L. Quezon High School.

The police said Oblea was on his way home from school at around 2 p.m. when Estipular covered the boy’s face with a towel and stabbed him repeatedly. The boy was able to free himself from the suspect’s grasp but fell down after running a few yards.

Bystanders rushed Oblea to the Chinese General Hospital but the boy was declared dead on arrival.

The police recovered a 13-inch kitchen knife allegedly used by the suspect, who was arrested.

Chief Inspector Dominador Arevalo Jr., who heads the homicide section of the Manila Police District, said Estipular is a drug user and could have been under the influence of drugs when he allegedly committed the crime.

Estipular admitted stabbing Oblea but claimed he was provoked by Oblea’s “bad stare” and they figured in a fistfight. He said he stopped using drugs after he underwent a rehabilitation program last year. – Nestor Etolle