I could not look at him, father of slain cop's son says

The father of the slain eight-year-old boy said he could barely look at the body of his child after it was found decomposing at a calamansi farm in Tarlac.

According to a "24 Oras" report by Bea Pinlac on Friday, Police Senior Master Sergeant John Mollenido personally identified the cadaver of John Ysmael at a funeral parlor in the province.

He said his son still wore the jacket he was last seen wearing on January 16.

“Base po sa mga huling suot niya, sa gamit niya, sapatos, tapos yung built ng katawan… tapos yung mukha ma-identify pa naman po. Hindi ko kaya siyang tingnan ng ganoong katagal. Hindi niya deserve yung ganoong ginawa ka sa kanya,” he said.

(Based on what he last wore, his things, shoes, and the built of his body… and his face is still identifiable. I couldn’t look at him for too long. He doesn’t deserve what they did to him.)

On January 24, Ysmael’s 38-year-old mother, Police Senior Master Sergeant Diane Marie Mollenido, was also found dead in a creek in Pulilan, Bulacan, with a gunshot wound to the head.

Mother and son were last seen on January 16 and were officially reported missing on January 19 by John.

“Nakakapanglumo. Hindi ko matanggap. Hoping pa nga ako na buhay yung anak ko eh. Masakit na masakit na masakit. Maraming pangarap yung batang yun. Maraming pinangako sa akin. Yung huling usap nga namin, bibilhan niya na nga ako ng sports car tsaka bahay,” he added.

(It’s depressing. I can’t accept it… I was still hoping that my son was still alive. It really hurts. He had so many dreams. He made me a lot of promises. The last time we talked, he even told me he would buy me a sports car and a house.)

Mollenido has been named a person of interest in the case.

“Nakikipag-cooperate naman ako, hindi naman ako nagtatago, andito naman ako.  Pag may mga tanong sila, sinasagot ko naman… Mabibigyan din naman ang hustisya, ang mag ina ko,” he said.

(I am cooperating, I’m not hiding, and I’m here. If they have questions, I am answering… I am seeking justice for my wife and son.)

According to the Southern Police District, Ysmael died due to “asphyxia by suffocation."

“Naggagapas siya, napansin niya may naka plastic bag na mahaba. Pag dito ka po, halos wala kang maaamoy eh, unless na bababa ka doon sa talagang malapit sa kanya, may namaamoy ka konti… Sa tingin ko po ang naaagnas na yun, dahil nagtutubig na yung nakita namin kahapon,” said Barangay Maluid chairman Sandy Torres.

(He was mowing grass and noticed something long in a plastic bag. If you stay here, you can barely smell anything unless you actually head down and get close to him, then you will start smelling something… I think he was decomposing because he was already watery when we found him yesterday.)

Police said that their investigations into the deaths continue as they work to identify possible suspects.

“Sa ngayon, wala pa tayo talagang concrete details kung sino yung posibleng may gawa, but continuously, yun nga, magko-coordinate tayo sa mga concerned agencies para mag-backtracking sa pagre-review ng mga CCTVs doon dahil yun lang ang susi para makilala natin kung sino yung may-ari ng sasakyan at kung anong klaseng sasakyan ang ginami nila sa pag-dump doon sa cadaver doon sa lugar,” said Victoria Police chief Police Major Marty Calara.

(As of now, we don’t have any concrete details as to who could have done this, but we will continuously coordinate with concerned agencies for backtracking and reviewing CCTVs there because that is the only key to identifying the owner of the vehicle and what type of car they used to dump the cadaver in the area.)

Police had implemented a search warrant against another person of interest, a car agent who had allegedly met with Diane and her son last January 16.

They allegedly found blood stains at the agent’s home in Quezon City, and intend to run DNA tests on the victims.

Meanwhile, Ysmael’s body will be transported back to Metro Manila for a funeral alongside his mother. —Jiselle Anne C. Casucian/LDF, GMA Integrated News