Images of Caloocan slay suspects released

MANILA, Philippines - Police made public yesterday computer-generated images of two men suspected of killing a seaman’s wife and their 15-year-old daughter in their house in Caloocan City Saturday.

Chief Inspector Rodrigo Soriano, Caloocan City police investigation chief, said one of two witnesses saw both men drinking at the terrace of the house of victims Faith Jaena, 50, and her daughter, Tessa, in Barangay 173 at around 1 a.m.

“The description of the other witness who saw a man casing the victims’ house at about 11 p.m. is similar to that of the 38 to 42-year-old suspect seen at the terrace,” Soriano told The STAR.

Soriano maintained that the killing of Faith and Tessa is not a simple robbery with homicide, saying it was marked with “anger” and the house bore no sign of forced entry. The mother died from at least 50 stab wounds all over her body while Tessa was stabbed more than 30 times.

Soriano said they are not setting aside robbery but are looking into “circumstances” surrounding Faith’s relationship with her seaman husband, Troy, who is out of the country. He declined to answer any more questions, saying it might jeopardize their ongoing investigation.

An insider said investigators have uncovered “incriminating evidence” that may help in the early resolution of the case.

The bodies of Faith and Tessa were found in the master’s bedroom of their house at around 8 a.m. by Tessa’s 22-year-old brother, Timothy, a hotel and casino employee in Manila, who had just come home from the night shift. Neighbors did not hear any commotion at the Jaenas’ house before Timothy discovered the bodies.

Last Sunday, Mayor Enrico Echiverri offered a P200,000 reward for the arrest of the Jaenas’ killers.