8-year-old girl’s pa asks ‘maid’ to name poison

A Chinese-Filipino man from Quezon City identified the “housemaid” arrested by the Manila police as the same woman he employed as a maid last month who poisoned his daughter and three of his workers then disappeared with his cash and valuables.

Accompanied by Quezon City policemen, Edwin Tan, of Barangay Maharlika, was furious upon seeing Anamie Livrando at the detention cell of the Manila Police District.

“What have you done to my daughter? She’s still in pain at the hospital from the poison she had taken,” Tan told Livrando.

Livrando has admitted to poisoning and robbing at least four Chinese-Filipino families since January. Tan’s family is the fifth.

Tan said Livrando, who gave her name as “Edna,” was recommended by a friend’s maid last July 24. On the day Livrando was hired, three of his male workers suffered stomach pains, Tan said. Then his eight-year-old daughter, Elaine, also experienced severe stomach pain after drinking her milk. Tan believes Livrando laced the food and milk with poison.

Tan said he was not after the cash and valuables stolen by Livrando, but he wants to know what kind of poison she used so doctors can determine the type of antidote to administer to his daughter.

“Have pity on my daughter. You should see her writhe in pain every time the poison reacts in her body,” Tan told the suspect.

However, Livrando maintains that she is not aware of the type of poison that she said was only handed to her by Rosita Manabat, the alleged mastermind of their group.

Manabat, who was taken by the police when they arrested Livrando at her house in Project 7, Quezon City, vehemently denied the allegations.

Manabat, a resident of Macabebe, Pampanga, said she was in Livrando’s house to buy the jewelry Livrando offered. She added that she was not aware that the jewelry had been stolen.

Manabat denied Livrando’s claim that she is the one who looks for prospective victims since she is not even familiar with the Binondo district, where most of Livrando’s victims reside.    

Alexander Pua, whose son had been at the intensive care unit for 10 days after eating poisoned food, said he was informed by a doctor that a type of pesticide was mixed with the food taken by the victims.

Meisic police station chief Superintendent Nelson Yabut said a search of Livrando’s residence failed to yield any type of toxin she might have used to poison her victims.