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Thursday, January 29, 2004
Lapu cops rule out robbery:Victim, driver have an affair
By Oscar C. Pineda
THE woman who claimed she was robbed and stabbed by a taxi driver in Lapu-lapu City last Tuesday dawn was not robbed at all.
This is according to the Lapu-Lapu City policemen, who found inconsistencies in the statements of the woman. They also believe there was no act of lasciviousness involved, noting that the woman and her attacker knew each other.
Even her wounds were mostly scratches and “superficial.”
“They have a relationship,” said homicide investigator SPO3 Rolito Jumao-as.
Homicide Chief Geoffrey Baguio and Jumao-as visited the woman in Vicente Sotto Medical Center (VSMMC) in Cebu City yesterday morning.
Real name
During their talk, Baguio found out that the woman’s real name is Christine Fernandez Mer-cado and not Cherry Fernandez as what she earlier stated.
Mercado also admitted to Baguio yesterday that she did not lose any valuable item, so robbery was ruled out. She also said she was not raped, nor her private parts touched by the driver.
Jumao-as also visited Mercado’s friend in Tambuli beach resort. The friend was reportedly the reason the woman went out that night.
Introduced
Mercado’s friend introduced herself as a certain Norie. She told Jumao-as that she did not ask Mercado to visit her, so Mercado apparently went there on her own and without telling anybody why.
Norie also told Jumao-as that their employer, whom they refer to as “Kuya,” prevented Mercado from going out that night.
Jumao-as said the woman works at Gate 3 karaoke bar in Banilad, Cebu City.
Sun.Star visited Mercado yesterday at the VSMMC but she refused to talk.
Baguio noted that most of the woman’s wounds are apparently not intended to kill, as these were mostly scratches except for a slightly deep wound in her left breast.
She had said that the driver mounted her (gikabay-an siya) as he repeatedly stabbed her.
Baguio could not understand why the driver would act that way without provocation. Mercado had said they were not talking from Banilad to Barangay Maribago, which is roughly 15 kilometers away.
She also told Baguio that after the stabbing, she pretended to be dead and the driver covered her face with his polo shirt.
Shirt
But Baguio told her, “I thought you said before that he was wearing a sando.” She then replied she did not know where the suspect got the shirt.
She said the driver then backed up the cab, but Baguio interrupted her to ask how she knew this when her face was covered. She said she slightly lifted the shirt.
While the cab was moving, she said she grabbed the wheel from the driver and, with her foot, tried to open the door.
But Baguio wondered why she did not just open the door and jump off.
Mercado also admitted to the police that the taxi unit was a gray “J&T” taxi, but she failed to get the plate number.
When police noted her inconsistencies, Mercado looked dismayed. The police also reminded her that she lied by giving a false name.
The victim then reasoned that she is just trying to protect something, but did not elaborate. This fueled the police’s suspicion about her “extra-curricular” activities.
Mercado promised Baguio that she will notify the officer when she checks out of the hospital so they can visit the National Bureau of Investigation to have a cartographic sketch of the suspect.
(January 29, 2004 issue)
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