Metro Manila, Philippines – Former Public Works Undersecretary Maria Catalina Cabral died due to “blunt force trauma” after allegedly falling from a cliff in Benguet, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said on Saturday, Dec. 19.
Cabral, a key figure in the flood control corruption scandal, died on Thursday, Dec. 18, after she allegedly fell from a cliff near the Bued River along the Kennon Road in Tuba, Benguet. Authorities retrieved the body shortly after midnight on Friday and was declared dead on the scene.
Remulla confirmed to state broadcaster PTV Cordillera that the remains found were Cabral’s.
He earlier said authorities are conducting thorough identity checks to rule out possibilities that the incident was staged to evade charges in relation to the flood control mess.
Citing the autopsy results, Remulla said there were no signs of foul play in Cabral’s death.
He said the autopsy indicated “results consistent with [blunt force trauma] as a result of the 30-meter fall,” which was comparable to the height of 10-story building.
“Ang nakita namin ay basag ang dito niya [right side of face], likod ng ulo. Ang ribs niya ay pumasok sa internal organs at bali ang kanyang mga paa,” Remulla was quoted in a news release.
[Translation: We saw the right side of her face and the back of her head were broken. Her ribs penetrated her internal organs and there were broken legs.]
The secretary also said there were no signs of struggles in the car, no skin cells found in Cabral’s fingernails, and no gunshot wounds.
Meanwhile, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on Saturday called on motorists who passed through the area along Kennon Road where Cabral was found on Thursday to share recordings of dashcam footage to assist investigators.
NBI agents also searched the hotel room used by Cabral in Baguio City before she was found dead to obtain evidence on late Saturday evening.
Executive Judge Michael Francisco of the Benguet Regional Trial Court Branch 6 issued the search warrant.
Cabral’s husband is expected to turn over personal items of the former public works official for the investigation of the authorities.
In a briefing on Friday, Remulla admitted that there was a lapse on the part of investigators in handing over the phone to Cabral’s family after her remains were retrieved.
On Friday, the Department of Justice recommended plunder charges against Cabral, but her death extinguishes possible criminal liability, leaving the government to pursue only the forfeiture of potential ill-gotten wealth.
Cabral was linked to alleged budget insertions and multi-million peso kickbacks from flood control projects. Former Public Works Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo claimed that Cabral communicated and met with legislators to inform them of the amount of their allocations and ask them for titles of projects that they want to include in the Department of Public Works and Highways budget.
