The driver of former Department of Public Works and Highways undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral was placed under police custody as authorities continued to look into the circumstances surrounding her death in Tuba, Benguet.
Based on a Benguet Police report, Cabral was seen last with her driver in Sitio Camp 5, Maramal, Barangay Camp 4 along Kennon Road on Thursday, December 18, 2025.
The driver told police he left Cabral briefly to go to a gasoline station nearby. When he returned, Cabral was no longer at the spot where he left her.
At around 8 p.m., the driver sought help from Baguio City Police Station 8. Authorities later found Cabral along the side of the Bued River during a follow-up operation.
The Tuba Fire Station, one of the responding units, said Cabral sustained severe injuries.
“Nakita namin siya as in na naka-fetal position. ‘Yung katawan niya, ‘yung mga buto niya sa paa, durog na,” Fire marshal FINS P. Keith Wilmer Bolinget said.
The retrieval operation, led by the Bureau of Fire Protection with the MDRRMO and police, lasted about five hours.
Some residents near the gasoline station said they noticed the driver staying in the area for more than an hour.
“Nandoon lang siya nagre-relax kasi ang sabi ko baka puyat siya. Oo, pumunta siyang bumili ng sigarilyo,” Victor Paswich, a resident, said.
“Wala naman siyang kasama. Mag-isa niya lang doon kasi nakabukas ‘yung bintana ng driver side,” he added.
Another resident, Arnulfo Milo, said the driver tried to look for Cabral before going to the police.
“Nung nagpatulong na sa pulis, doon na-flashlightan nila na nandoon kasi ‘pag tinitignan mo lang na ganoon sa ibaba, kung hindi mo idudungaw ‘yung ulo mo, hindi mo makikita kasi may mga damo,” Milo said.
The Benguet Police Provincial Office said it has yet to issue an official statement as details are still being finalized.
Police said the driver remains under the custody of the Tuba Police Station. He declined to give an interview, while authorities continued efforts to get a statement from Cabral’s family.
