Bukidnon couple bury sick son alive

IMPASUGONG, Bukidnon — A couple desperate for money for food and medicines forced their ailing three-year-old son inside a wooden coffin in the hope of getting alms from neighbors, and buried him alive when the boy’s playmate discovered their racket.

The couple, Julio Mansalay and his wife Rosita, of the remote village of Kalabugao in this town, are now facing parricide charges filed by the police for the death of their son Exson last Oct. 13.

Mansalay is now detained at the municipal jail, while his wife escaped and is now being hunted down.

In the complaint, Inspector Mansueto Sato, the town’s police chief, said the couple placed their son, who was still breathing and asking for food and water, inside a wooden coffin.

"The child tried his best to get out, but his father (with the help of his mother) wrestled the hand of the victim, then closed and nailed the coffin," Sato said.

In a sworn statement, Dino Lepania, the victim’s 13-year-old playmate, said the Mansalay couple earlier had informed their neighbors that Exson died and they needed kalimbuyas (corn grits) as alms.

Upon learning of his friend’s "death," Lepania rushed to the Mansalays’ home only to discover that Exson was still alive, lying in bed and asking for food and water.

When the couple saw Lepania, they immediately forced Exson into the coffin and buried him alive in the backyard.

"I saw his hand as he tried to get out, but his father put a nail on the coffin," Lepania said in the local dialect.

The boy said the incident was also witnessed by Exson’s two brothers.

Barangay Kalabugao is about 42 kilometers from this town’s poblacion. Its residents have to go the capital town of Malaybalay to avail themselves of medical services.