The body of Shiela Cano, a 25-year-old fish vendor, was found inside the room she shared with Wilson Daria in their house on Steve Street in Barangay (village) Commonwealth, Quezon City, on Tuesday afternoon.
She had shot herself in the head with a .38-cal. revolver. Beside her was a letter in which she asked her partner and their two children for forgiveness.
Daria, however, told the police that he and the victim did not own any weapons. He said that he did not know where the victim had gotten the gun from.
The couple own a fish stall at the Commonwealth Market. The money which the victim had gambled away was to have gone toward paying off their debt to their fish supplier as well as the house rent, he added.
Daria recalled that on Sunday evening, the victim went to a house in their neighborhood where people were playing bingo.
When she failed to return on Monday morning, Daria said he sent their son to fetch her.
However, he came back by himself, saying his mother had refused to come home with him.
This prompted Daria to go and get the victim himself. However, when she told him that she had lost the P20,000 they had set aside as payment for the rent and fish supplier, they had an argument.
Daria said he returned home by himself. The victim, on the other hand, came home only on Tuesday morning and locked herself inside their room.
Later in the afternoon, Daria told the police that he and his sister were talking when they heard a loud thud coming from the bedroom.
When they checked the source of the noise, they found the victim lying on the floor with blood coming from her temple.