PNP: Persons of interest eyed in beauty pageant bet’s disappearance

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police is eyeing several persons of interest (POIs) possibly linked to the disappearance of a beauty pageant candidate and her Israeli boyfriend, PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said on Tuesday.

Fajardo, however, opted not to reveal the identities of these POIs and how many there are so as not to compromise the investigation. 

“May mga identified na persons of interest sa ngayon di ako makapagbigay na numero nakiusap po ang CIDG (Criminal Investigation and Detection Group) na huwag muna magbigay ng detalye,” Fajardo said in a press briefing on Tuesday. 

(We already identified persons of interest, but the CIDG asked us not to give more details.)

“But we are pursuing very good leads,” she added. 

Based on previous reports, Mutya ng Pilipinas Pampanga 2024 candidate Geneva Lopez and Yitchak Cohen met a “middleman” in Tarlac to check the 20.5-hectare agricultural land they intended to buy. 

Citing the middleman, police said they were last seen around 2 p.m. on June 21, while their gray Nissan Terra sport utility vehicle (SUV) was found burning along the Capas-San Jose Road in Cristo Rey village at 2:36 a.m. on June 22. 

Capas police chief Lt. Col. Librado Maranang Jr. revealed that police had examined what seemed like a burned “cellphone or tablet” found inside the SUV. 

“The mobile gadget, a cell phone, was brought to the regional anti-cybercrime office in Camp Olivas (in San Fernando, Pampanga) for forensic investigation. But data could no longer be retrieved from the gadget because it was completely burned,” he said.

Maranag added the CIDG operatives found an abandoned car along Barangay Tibag, Tarlac City, on Sunday night (June 30). 

Maranang also said they are still searching for witnesses to help them locate Lopez and Cohen.

He appealed to anyone with vital information to come forward and cooperate with the authorities.