Woman wanted for murder, human trafficking nabbed
Liezyl Margallo, a native of Cagayan de Oro City, was arrested in a resort while she, along with two British nationals, was walking on the beach past noon Wednesday.
Authorities have been hunting the 23-year-old suspect since 2015 for several counts of human trafficking violations.
Margallo has 16 outstanding warrants of arrest issued by the court in Cagayan de Oro for qualified trafficking in persons, and violations of RA 995 and RA 7610 in relation to RA 10175. Margallo refused to comment on the charges against her.
She was the live-in partner and alleged cohort of Australian pedophile Peter Gerard Scully, who has been dubbed "porno king" and "predator" because of his sexual offenses against children.
Margallo and Scully reportedly conspired in luring poor children to go with them with the promise of a better life, said lawyer Janet Francisco, chief of the NBI-Manila Anti-Human Trafficking Division.
Francisco said Scully allegedly groomed his victims and assure their parents of better life and getting good education.
"Sexually ina-abuse yung mga bata. Sinasaktan nila while video-taping and recording. Yung pag-aabuso sa kanila in accordance sa request and instructions ng clients nila from Brazil, Germany or US," she said.
Scully was arrested by elements of the NBI Anti-Human Trafficking Division in his rented house in Malaybalay City, Bukidnon in 2015 for allegedly running a pedophile ring and molesting dozens of children. He is currently detained at Cagayan de Oro City Jail.
Scully was arrested after two of his victims, aged 9 and 12, complained. The victims were detained with dog collars and chains for five days. The girls were allegedly forced by Scully's former live-in partner Carmen Alvarez to engage in sexual acts with each other while being filmed.
Scully also sexually abused or raped and tortured 11 children, the youngest of whom was only 18 months old, and killing another young girl, with the help of Margallo.
One of their victims, a 12-year-old girl was found dead in Scully's former home in Surigao City weeks after his arrest. She died from sexual abuse and torture, Francisco said.
Authorities found the 12-year-old's remains in February, buried beneath the kitchen of a separate apartment also rented by Scully in Surigao. Scully reportedly took the girl from her parents at the age of 10. Some of the victims were also made to dig their own grave.
Francisco said that minors molested by Margallo and Scully also suffered from torture, and the abuses were recorded and uploaded in pornographic website.
Francisco said that suspects Margallo and Scully have been feeding a global market of paedophilic videos charging up to $10,000 for footage of children being tortured and abused by other underage victims. The videos were allegedly sold to customers in Germany, the US and Brazil.
One of the videos was called 'The Destruction of Daisy,' showing a naked 18-month old baby tortured by a masked and naked woman believed to be Margallo. The baby was identified as Daisy.
The video allegedly show the baby girl being tied upside down by her feet, sexually assaulted and bashed. An older woman was seen whipping the child repeatedly and placed a duct tape on the baby's lips to silence her.
Francisco said it was tagged as the "worst sex vi-deo" involving a child. Scully is seen using a lighter, hot wax, barbed wire and sex toys in the videos on his alleged victims.
Francisco said Scully also had foreign counterparts from Germany, Brazil, Australia, among others.
Francisco said Scully and Margallo started their operations in the Philippines, particularly in Cagayan, Davao and Surigao City in 2011. She said the two met in the social networking site.
Scully, a father of two, slipped out of Melbourne after being accused of 117 counts of fraud and deception. He fled to Manila in 2011 where he allegedly established a lucrative business, live-streaming videos in a 'pay for view' scheme.
Scully allegedly scammed more than $2.68 million from 20 investors in an investment scheme and was under investigation from 2009 by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.
Francisco said they were able to rescue eight children who are now under the custody of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Cagayan.
"The parents were shocked after knowing the gruesome incidents involving their children," she said.
Margallo was tracked down with the help of the Australian Federal Police, according to NBI-7 Assistant Director Dominador Cimafranca. She will be brought to Cagayan de Oro to face trial. (FREEMAN)
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