Motel ‘suicide’ leaves letter, robbery report

A call center agent who was also into money lending was found dead inside a motel room before dawn Saturday in Quezon City, with an apparent suicide note and a copy of a statement he gave to the police claiming that he lost P200,000 to robbers two days earlier.

The body of Alexander Santos, 40, was discovered, with a nylon rope noosed around the neck, inside the bathroom of one of the rooms at Yale Apartelle in Barangay E. Rodriguez around 4 a.m.

Case investigator PO3 Jamie de Jesus said also found on a desk were a suicide note, a “return to work” order from the victim’s company, and his statement taken at the Cubao police station about the alleged robbery. The note conveyed an apology to his wife and parents.

The body was found slumped on the bathroom floor. Police surmised that the victim hanged himself and the rope later snapped.

Investigators gathered that Santos claimed to have been victimized by robbers who took P200,000 in cash and his coworkers’ ATM cards that he kept in connection with his money-lending business.

The victim would withdraw daily from the ATM accounts of the borrowers as payment for the loans, according to De Jesus.

Santos was alone when he checked in at the apartelle around 10:30 p.m. and told the hotel cashier, Alexander Base, to wake him up around 3:30 a.m. Saturday as he needed to go somewhere. But there was no response when an employee knocked on the door for the wake-up call, prompting the employee to use a spare key to check on the guest.

Police also learned from the victim’s family that Santos had been absent without leave from work for nearly a week.

If you or someone you know is in need of assistance, please reach out to the National Center for Mental Health (NCMH). Their crisis hotlines are available at 1553 (Luzon-wide landline toll-free), 0917-899-USAP (8727), 0966-351-4518, and 0908-639-2672. For more information, visit their website: (https://doh.gov.ph/NCMH-Crisis-Hotline)

Alternatively, you can contact Hopeline PH at the following numbers: 0917-5584673, 0918-8734673, 88044673. Additional resources are available at ngf-mindstrong.org, or connect with them on Facebook at Hopeline PH.