The Philippine National Police (PNP) belied reports that missing public relations practitioner Salvador "Bubby" Dacer had been found dead in a barangay in Malaybalay, Bukidnon early yesterday.
PNP officials at Camp Crame said there was no truth to text messages that circulated yesterday announcing the discovery of the body of Dacer, who has been missing since Nov. 24.
"This is again one of the erroneous text messages that have been spreading," said one PNP official who had talked to the Malaybalay police to check the reports.
The official said he was informed by a certain PO2 Noel Salvacion that no dead man’s body was found in Barangay Casisang in Malaybalay, contrary to what the text messages said.
The Malaybalay police were swamped with phone calls early yesterday after the text message circulated among cellular phone users. The message, purportedly from Dacer’s family, asked for prayers for his soul.
"Let’s pray for Bubby Dacer’s soul. His body was found in Barangay Casisang, Malaybalay City. Please pass this message that the people will know," the message read.
Lawyer Godwin Valdez, who is based in Malaybalay, said residents of the city were stirred by the report. "The news spread that Dacer’s body was found in the city’s old airport complex and people rushed there to see if it’s true," he said. "But they were disappointed since there was nothing there."
Valdez said the Malaybalay police received a call at about 9 a.m. yesterday from a man claiming to be resident of Barangay Casisang. The man informed them of the discovery of Dacer’s body in the area.
Police, however, believe the call may have come not from Bukidnon but from another place, possibly Metro Manila.
The PNP said there was a man’s body found by residents of Manolo Fortich district in Bukidnon last Jan. 30, but it did not match Dacer’s features. The body remains unidentified, police said.
Meanwhile, Justice Secretary Hernando Perez is still hoping to see Dacer alive. "It’s possible he is still alive," he said.
The Department of Justice had ordered the National Bureau of Investigation to look into Dacer’s disappearance, and newly appointed NBI Director Reynaldo Wycoco said their probe is almost 85 percent complete.
Dacer and his long-time driver Manuel Corbito have been missing since Nov. 24. They were allegedly abducted by unknown men while on their way to Manila Hotel where Dacer was supposed to meet with former President Fidel Ramos, one of his well-known clients.
Dacer’s white Toyota Revo vehicle was later found ditched in a ravine in Cavite. – With Allen Estabillo, Liberty Dones