Teener raped, killed

Police recovered the body of an unidentified teenage girl believed raped and strangled to death in a watermelon farm in Taytay, Rizal yesterday.

Police investigator PO2 Elvis Arellano said they are looking for witnesses to shed light on the rape-slaying of the girl, believed to be 14 to 17 years old.

The owner of the watermelon plantation along Highway 2000 in Barangay Lupang Arienda found the girl’s body at 1 a.m. yesterday.

The victim, who was naked from the waist down, was described as about 4’6" to 4’8" tall, and wearing a red T-shirt and a silver necklace with a pendant with the word "Rose."

Scene-of-the-crime operatives said the girl showed signs of rape and strangulation.

Arellano suspects that more than one person committed the crime.

Police said the victim could have been raped inside a hut, some 15 meters away from where her body was found, as evidenced by drops of blood found there.

"Maaring lumaban ang bata kaya’t sinakal hanggang mamatay (The girl could have resisted so she was strangled to death)," a policeman said.

The victim’s body was brought to the Golden Hearts funeral parlor for autopsy.