PAF man tagged in Lipa woman dentist’s killing

LIPA CITY – Police have filed murder charges against a Philippine Air Force (PAF) man, who was tagged in the killing of a 29-year-old woman dentist in her clinic here last Jan. 24.

Superintendent Rodney Ramirez, city police chief, identified the suspect as Airman Second Class Kenan Euren Resurreccion, 25, assigned with the PAF’s 750th Combat Group based at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City.

Ramirez said Resurreccion was charged before the city prosecutor’s office last Feb. 12 after at least three eyewitnesses identified him as the bloodied man seen rushing out of the dental clinic of victim Mary Joy Duroy at the corner of C.M. Recto Avenue and Simeon Luz street in Barangay 6 here.

“We have a strong case against the suspect when the witnesses positively identified (him) in a photo gallery that we presented to them” Ramirez told The STAR.

Ramirez, together with Superintendent Archie Macala, Batangas chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, said they were able to establish leads and evidence strongly linking Resurreccion, a former boyfriend of Duroy, to her killing.

Duroy was scheduled to get married with her boyfriend working abroad last December, but the wedding was postponed due to time constraints.

Quoting the dentist’s mother, Ramirez said Resurreccion apparently could not accept the fact that Duroy was getting married to another man. 

Ramirez said they were still pursuing leads that Resurreccion had two accomplices, who were also in Duroy’s clinic when she was slain.

Resurreccion, however, denied the charges, as one of his officers told The STAR.

The PAF officer, a cousin of Resurreccion, quoted him as saying that he is innocent and is ready to face any investigation. 

The STAR tried to interview Resurreccion, but his cousin, who requested anonymity, said the former is under the custody of his command and could not comment on the case.

At around 2 p.m. last Jan. 24, the Lipa police received a phone call from a concerned citizen about a man covered with blood stepping out of Duroy’s clinic.

When lawmen responded to the call, they found Duroy dead with a slashed throat and broken skull. She sustained at least 20 stab wounds in different parts of the body.

Probers said Duroy could have fought off her attacker, prompting the latter to cut her throat and hit her head on the floor.

Duroy was buried last Feb. 3 at the Eternal Garden memorial park here.           – With Ed Amoroso