ILOILO CITY, Philippines — A reward of P30,000 has been offered for any information leading to the arrest of the killer of a pawnshop manager in Kalibo, Aklan.
Kalibo mayor-elect Juris Sucro said the monetary reward that he is offering could encourage the public to cooperate with authorities and solve the murder of Bonna Ambay, 23, of the RD Pawnshop located on Mabini street, Barangay Poblacion.
The family of the victim reportedly expressed willingness to give an additional amount of P70,000 for the arrest of the killer.
The Kalibo police identified Mark Archie Torrefiel as a person of interest in the case after a security guard’s uniform bearing his family name and initials was recovered from the crime scene.
Town police chief Maj. Jasson Belciña refused to confirm whether Torrefiel has left Aklan.
Ambay, a resident of Pandan, Antique, was found dead in her workplace on Monday morning. Her body bore several stab wounds, indicating she tried to defend herself from her killer.
Robbery eyed
Police have yet to determine the motive for the killing, although they are eyeing robbery.
Probers said the victim’s mobile phone was missing and her wallet was found empty.
Pawnshop employees told police that they did not know of any dispute between Ambay and Torrefiel.
Belciña said they are working to fix the glitches on the footage taken by a closed-circuit television camera installed at the pawnshop.
Ambay and Torrefiel were the duty personnel and security guard, respectively, when the incident occurred.
Belciña said they would ask Torrefiel’s employer – Healrt Security Agency – why the suspect was hired despite having a criminal record.
Data from the police showed Torrefiel had two robbery cases logged in Pasig and Aklan.