A 2-YEAR-OLD boy drowned in a canal, while his mother was with her “sugar daddy” when the incident occurred around 10 p.m. last Saturday, January 6, 2024, in Sitio 3-H, Barangay Basak, Lapu-Lapu City.
John Khean Pantulan was pronounced dead when he arrived at a hospital in Lapu-Lapu City.
In an interview with GMA Super Radyo DYSS, the child's grandfather, George Pantulan, stated that he was downstairs with his grandson.
After his grandson fell asleep, he took the youngster upstairs to sleep next to his grandma, then he went downstairs to resume watching TV.
When he went upstairs again after watching TV, the child was already gone.
"Nataranta ko kay wala naman ang bata diha sa tupad sa iyang lola! Wala gyud nila makit-i kun asa na" George said.
(I panicked because the child had disappeared from the picture next to his grandma; they couldn’t find him anymore).
Pantulan thought the toddler had fallen into the six-foot-deep canal next to their home.
He claimed that he was able to locate his grandson when he jumped into the canal, and that they quickly took him to the hospital, where his attending physician declared him dead.
The grandfather said that the six-foot-deep canal has existed for a considerable amount of time and that the barangay is currently trying to cover it in order to avoid the incident from happening again.
The 17-year-mother expressed regret for her son’s ordeal.
She claimed that after splitting up with the child's 23-year-old father and her former live-in partner, Kenneth, around a year ago, she hardly ever went home.
"Naa ko sa akong "Sugar Daddy" ato nga time dihang nalumos akong anak! Nangita kog kwarta mao naa ko permi niya," dugang sa inahan.
(I was with my “sugar daddy” when my son drowned. I was looking for money, that’s why I always stayed with him (sugar daddy)). (With TPT)