Murder raps to be filed vs. "hostages" of Norwegian

CEBU, Philippines - Charges for murder are set to be filed before the Regional Trial Court today against the three suspects in the killing of Norwegian Nils Aksnes Frodei Stein.

The murder charge that was pushed yesterday had to be resubmitted due to lack of requirements to be submitted by the complaining party.

The complainant is Stein’s wife, Teresa, who went to court yesterday with her lawyer and the suspects accompanied by the police.

But due to lack of affidavits from the witnesses and the arresting officers, they were told to come back and complete the requirements.

Today is the expected filing of the complaint before the provincial prosecutor’s office.

The 51-year-old Norwegian national died early Monday after he was stabbed by one of four persons, two of them are minors who claimed they were taken hostage by the foreigner inside the latter's house in Consolacion town, 13 kilometers north of Cebu City.

Stein, who was living with his nine-year-old daughter in Grant Ville Subdivision, Jugan, Consolacion, was pronounced dead on arrival at the Eversley Childs Sanitarium and Hospital in Mandaue City, after the alleged hostage-taking and stabbing around 4:30 a.m. last Monday.

Meanwhile, Consolacion police station personnel will be placed under investigation for allegedly contaminating the evidence in the crime scene.

Three of the four alleged hostages are now being held as suspects in the case. They are a 16-year-old girl, Nisil Mate Ceriales, 35, and Cherryl Mate Nocete, 38, all from Dumaguete City.

The fourth alleged hostage was Nocete’s 12-year-old daughter, who was reportedly put inside a closet by Stein.

The police said that Nocete and her daughter arrived in Consolacion last Saturday upon the invitation of the Norwegian, who wanted her to become his helper and her daughter to be the playmate of his nine-year-old daughter.

Ceriales and Stein are reportedly old friends and met the 16-year-old and Nocete when they were in Dumaguete three weeks ago.

The police said that Stein reportedly had a misunderstanding with his wife as alleged by the suspects. This was allegedly why he had been drinking since Sunday morning.

The allegedly drunk Stein reportedly pointed a gun at Nocete and ordered her to undress with a threat that she would be killed if she would not do so.

After this, she was allegedly hogtied and gagged with masking tape and was also stuffed into the closet by the Norwegian.

The 16-year-old was also reportedly ordered by Stein at gunpoint to undress.

When Ceriales arrived at the apartment Saturday evening, the Norwegian national also pointed a gun at him and later hogtied him.

At around 4:30 a.m. yesterday, with the help of Ceriales, Nocete and the 16-year-old were able to free themselves.

When the Norwegian found out that they were able to free themselves, he pointed his gun at Nocete, who tried to grab the gun with the help of Ceriales. The 16-year-old alleged that she hit the foreigner in the head with a softdrink bottle then grabbed a knife and stabbed Stein several times. - Jasmin R. Uy and Christopher Gabriel C. Bonjoc/BRP (THE FREEMAN)