A 20-year-old nursing student was found dead in a vacant lot in Barangay Sapul, Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro, police said.
The victim was identified as Maru Gabayno, a third-year nursing student at St. Anthony College in Calapan City and a resident of Bongabong, Oriental Mindoro.
Police said Gabayno had stab wounds to her chest. Her underwear was reportedly lowered when her body was found, prompting investigators to consider the possibility that she had been sexually assaulted before she was killed. Authorities have not confirmed this suspicion.
According to the Oriental Mindoro Provincial Police, the body was discovered at about 1:15 a.m. Investigators said the suspect may have waited for Gabayno along a route she used near her residence.
Oriental Mindoro Provincial Police Director Col. Efraim Camara ordered a deeper investigation into the case.
Police were directed to verify closed-circuit television footage, pursue possible leads, identify potential witnesses and take other steps that could help solve the killing.
Meanwhile, the local government offered a reward of 100,000 pesos for information that could help authorities investigate the case.
Police have not announced an identified suspect or disclosed further details about the circumstances surrounding Gabayno’s death. Authorities continue working to establish what happened.
