Cops recover skeletons of woman killed by son-in-law

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May 23, 2026 | 5:16pm

COTABATO CITY, Philippines — Policemen found on Friday, May 22, in a swampy area in Sitio Timako in Barangay Kalanganan in this city the skeletons of a woman killed by her son-in-law eight months ago.  

Col. Jibin Bongcayao, Cotabato City police director, and Capt. Steffie Salanguit, spokesperson of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, separately confirmed to reporters on Saturday the recovery of the remains of the 40-year-old victim, Arbaina Abdullah Guiapar, immediately buried by her relatives.

Salanguit said officials of the Cotabato City Police Office learned about Guiapar’s having been killed by her 28-year-old son-in-law, Omar Balabagan, from her relatives and her own daughter, Norhana, all keen on prosecuting him for his criminal offense.

The 26-year-old Norhana had reported to police units in Cotabato that her husband, addicted to shabu and marijuana, mauled with impunity and strangled her mother to death in their house in Sitio Timako in Barangay Kalanganan 2 in October last year.

She said Balabagan dumped her mother’s cadaver at a swampy spot near a beachfront in Sitio Timako and, subsequently, took her to their hometown, Talitay, in Maguindanao del Norte, and warned to kill her too if she returned to Cotabato City.

Balabagan divested her of her mobile phone and prevented her from interacting with villagers in Talitay, one of the 12 towns in Maguindanao del Norte, where he virtually held her for eight months.

Bongcayao and Salanguit had told reporters that Norhana managed to escape last Tuesday, returned to Sitio Timako and reported to barangay officials and personnel of the Cotabato City Police Station 3 what her husband had done to her mother.

Policemen, led by Capt. Clebby Cabotahe, and police forensic experts found the skeletons of Guipar with the help of Norhana, their neighbors and traditional Moro community leaders in a secluded area in Sitio Timako, located in west of Barangay Kalanganan 2.

Bongacayao said police units in Maguindanao del Norte are now trying to locate Balabagan, who had reportedly fled from Talitay after he found out that Norhana was gone and had returned to Cotabato City.