Women saved from American

CEBU, Philippines - A 28-year-old former Overseas Filipino Worker was rescued by the police yesterday from an American in Talisay City who allegedly drugged her and another woman so he could abuse them.

Lawrence Pendarvis, a 71-year old retired chemist, was arrested by personnel of the Talisay City Police Station for illegally detaining women in his apartment and reportedly drugging them so he can have sexual intercourse with them.

The policemen conducted a rescue operation around 3 p.m. in a beach resort in Barangay Pooc, Talisay City, where the suspect and the former OFW have reportedly been staying for almost a month now. 

Talisay Police Station chief Superintendent Reycel Carmelo Dayon said that a 52-year-old woman, who claimed to be a victim of Pendarvis, came to the police station along with her relatives yesterday afternoon to ask for help in rescuing the former OFW from Pendarvis.

The older woman was able to escape from Pendarvis last Saturday after being rescued by her colleagues and relatives. She reportedly called one of them after Pendarvis choked her with the cord of a laptop.

One of her relatives said they found her naked and barely able to move as she was allegedly still under the influence of drugs.

Dayon said that the owner of the resort tried to stop the police from entering but was told he could be charged for obstruction of justice.

The police forcibly opened the apartment since Pendarvis insisted on not letting them in. They caught the suspect and the former OFW putting their clothes back on. Dayon said that the younger woman was found to be high on drugs when rescued.

Online friends

The older woman said that she met Pendarvis online before he came here last August and initially stayed in a hotel in Cebu City.

Pendarvis allegedly asked her to bring minors to the hotel which she admitted doing. She brought minors to Pendarvis, but did not say if he had sex with them.

She also said she only had sex with Pendarvis once, she said she was also drugged by the former OFW upon the orders of Pendarvis.

The former OFW said that she also met Pendarvis through social media and communicated with him for about a year and a half. The suspect then bought a ticket for her to come to Cebu from Surigao and she arrived here December 10.

She said she was once instructed by Pendarvis to drug the older woman with sex enhancers since the latter was already in her menopausal stage.

She said that it was Friday when she noticed the older woman was having difficulty breathing after being allegedly drugged by Pendarvis. The older woman slapped him and he retaliated by choking her with a laptop cord. The younger woman said Pendarvis then turned his rage on her and banged her head on the floor several times.

Pendarvis denied all allegations against him, saying that the victims are both his lovers and he did not use any drug on them.

Police found sex enhancement drugs, syringes, a camera, a laptop, a tablet, SD cards and pornographic materials in his luggage.

While the two victims denied that Pendarvis recorded them, the police found nude photos and videos of them in the suspect’s gadgets. 

Dayon said that they cannot yet determine how long Pendarvis is staying in Cebu since he had no passport. Dayon said that the former OFW confessed that she accompanies the suspect every month to the immigration bureau and reportedly paid P7,000 to bribe officials.

She also said that the suspect even spent her P17,000 savings and promised them he would return the money once he receives his pension, but she said she only received P2,000 from Pendarvis once and that she and the older woman even spend for his needs.

Dayon said that Pendarvis will face charges for illegal detention, violation of RA 9292 or Violence against Women and Children, possibly rape, and administration of illegal drugs.

He added that the older woman may also be tagged as an accessory of the crime for previously bringing minors to Pendarvis’ hotel. He added that the two women have to undergo medical examinations, including blood testing.

The two are now under custody of the Department of Welfare and Social Services. —/BRP (FREEMAN)