Police to file parricide case

CEBU, Philippines - Police will be pursuing parricide case against Francisco Alpar, the suspect in the shooting to death of her spouse, Endridia Alpar, last Tuesday in Barangay West Poblacion, Naga City.

This is after medico-legal officer Dr. Nestor Sator recovered two pellets of an improvised shotgun from the body of Endridia during the autopsy.

Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) Director Patrocinio Comendador said that a parricide case will be prepared against Francisco since it was already established that gunshot wounds were the cause of Endridia’s death.

“It was clearly established based on the autopsy result and so far there is no other suspect except the husband,” Comendador said.

Francisco was arrested and detained by the Naga City Police for obstruction of justice for failure to immediately inform the police of the incident.

Comendador added that they will be getting affidavits from witnesses while waiting for the result of the paraffin test.

Police are still exerting effort to recover the firearm used in the killing of  the victim.

Comendador  further said they will also investigate if the attending physician at the Minglanilla District Hospital where Endridia was taken will be accused for malpractice for failure to notice gunshot wounds in the victim’s body.

Endridia actually died of internal bleeding due to two gun pellets that hit her body, based on the autopsy conducted by Sator.

“Namatay siya due to pellet wounds, wala namatay sa sakit,” said Sator, dismissing the earlier diagnosis of Minglanilla doctors that the victim died of cardiac arrest. (She did not die of an illness.)

The pellets were found in Endridia’s right side of the stomach and in the pulmonary artery, a major vein that connects the lung to the heart, said Sator.

The recovered pellets indicate the possibility that the victim was shot using an improvised shot gun, Sator further revealed.  Comparing to a shotgun which is loaded with a number of pellets, the victim was only hit with three pellets, which indicates that she was shot at a distance.

“Kung duol, duna pa ka’y makita nga dako nga wound ug posible may ma-recover pang wad sa pellets. So since 3 (entrance) wounds ra, it would show that distansya ang pagkapusil,” the Crime Lab chief explained. (Had she been shot at close range, the wounds would have been bigger. Investigation showed that she was shot from a distance.)

Sator would not know when the victim could have acquired the shots since the body was already embalmed when he placed it under autopsy. However, he said the victim would die in a few minutes owing to internal bleeding, which is the usual case in a person who is hit with gun pellets.  (FREEMAN)