Retired judge stabbed, killed; helpers charged

DAGUPAN CITY—An 80-year-old retired judge was stabbed and killed allegedly by her helpers in her house in Trinidad Subdivision here on Saturday night, police said.

Supt. Romeo Caramat, city police chief, said the body of former regional trial court Judge Corazon Abalos-Merrera, 80, a widow, was found by her helpers on the second floor of her house in Barangay Arellano Bani. She had five stab wounds on her chest.

No family member was living with Merrera, but helpers, most of them men, had been assisting her in household chores and other errands.

Police found a 12-inch fan knife in the crime scene. Investigators later recovered blood-stained clothes in the helpers’ quarters.

Caramat said the police based the charges on a sworn affidavit of helper Genny Romano, 22, who said he overheard his colleagues saying they needed the services of Jacob Mendiola, a security guard who used to work in Merrera’s house, to rob their employer.

Charged were drivers Christian Benedict Lagatao, 20, and John-John Basa, 22; helpers Jeriel Cadelenia, 21, Felipe Quillope, 47, and Michael de Guzman; and Mendiola.

Other helpers told Merrera’s son, Roberto, that the victim saw a stranger in the house on Friday night and instructed them to inspect the house and its surroundings.