By Ronron
April 21, 2007
Forensic personnel of the Philippine National Police (PNP) declared on Saturday that several injuries to the head caused the death of US Peace Corps volunteer Julia Campbell.
The findings was announced yesterday afternoon after the autopsy on Campbell’s remains was completed by the PNP Crime Laboratory personnel at the Loyola Memorial Chapels and Crematorium morgue in Makati City, with American forensic pathologists as observers.
“The cause of death involves multiple blunt traumatic injuries of the head,” said Chief Inspector Mamerto Bernabe, Jr., medico-legal officer of the PNP Crime Laboratory who led the autopsy.
PNP Crime Laboratory head Chief Supt. Arturo Cacdac said the procedure began at 9am and ended at 3pm.
The process included pre-mortuary conference, documentation, breaking of the seal (the cadaver was placed in a bag and frozen), thawing of the cadaver, taking of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) samples, lifting of fingerprints, actual autopsy, odontological examination, reconstruction of the body, and debriefing.
“We will be preparing our official report, submit this to the chief PNP (Gen. Oscar Calderon), and make it available to everybody,” Cacdac said.
He said the report may be submitted to Calderon on Monday or Tuesday.
In an earlier interview, Cacdac also said: “We will also send copies of the report to the regional director of Cordillera Police and the Ifugao Police Provincial Director because they are the end users of this. We cannot hide this report because this will be used as evidence in the filing of a case, if ever.”
Campbell, 40, was believed to have been killed while hiking in Barangay Battad, Banaue, Ifugao. She was last seen alive on April 8 and discovered dead 10 days later at said barangay after a massive search by local residents, police and Army troopers.
Authorities had earlier said that the autopsy is intended to establish the identity of the recovered cadaver and the cause of death.
Based only on the results of the odontological examination yesterday, Cacdac said the “victim is indeed Julia Campbell.” The DNA test, on the other hand, will take three to four weeks to be able to yield results.
Bernabe said that with the injuries Campbell sustained on her head, mostly in front and on top of it, it is possible she was “bludgeoned” to death, using a blunt object.
Cordillera Region Police director Chief Supt. Raul Gonzales had earlier said that a piece of hard, wooden object, with suspected blood stains, was recovered from the crime scene. It is suspected to be the weapon used in the attack.
Gonzales said the potential piece of evidence will be subjected to laboratory analysis to ascertain if indeed it is stained with blood, and if the blood belongs to that of Campbell.
As of yesterday, Cacdac said they have yet to receive any potential material evidence from the local police in Banaue for their analysis.
Told about the initial findings yesterday of the PNP Crime Laboratory personnel, Gonzales said: “It’s good, so we’ll be having a stronger case now.”
Gonzales has theorized that there was a robbery attempt against Campbell, which she resisted, prompting her perpetrator to kill her.
Gonzales said a digital camera, some money and disintegrated eyeglasses of Campbell were recovered some 20 to 25 meters away from the site where she was buried and discovered.
“This could be a sign of struggle,” he said of the scattered materials.
On Friday, police said they already have the identity of the suspect but refused to divulge his name until they have sought an arrest warrant against him.
On the suspicion that the peace corps volunteer was raped, Bernabe said they cannot comment on it immediately. He said they need to collate all the data they collected to come up with a finding on the matter.
The forensic experts had been pointing out that the advanced state of decomposition of the cadaver will not make it easy for them to conduct the autopsy. Yesterday’s process included taking of vaginal smears to find for any signs of sexual abuse.
In a radio interview earlier in the day, Gonzales downplayed the possibility that Campbell was sexually assaulted, as he noted that her pants were still properly worn and zipped when she was found, and her upper clothes were likewise intact.
Cacdac said that with the completion of the autopsy, the PNP Crime Laboratory immediately released Campbell’s remains to the US Peace Corps.
“The PNP Crime Laboratory officially lost jurisdiction over the cadaver,” he said.
The Peace Corps immediately took custody of the cadaver and transferred it to Rizal Funeral Homes in Pasay City.
Campbell is among the more than 130 American peace corps volunteers in the country. She started serving in March 2005 where in she taught at a school in Legazpi City, Albay./DMS
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