‘It was murder’: Ma of hotel exec insists on suing

CASE NOT CLOSED The family of Edgel Joy Durolfo insists on filing criminal charges against the four people, including her live-in partner, who were with her on the day she died reportedly after a drug-fueled get-together at a hotel room in Parañaque City last week. ‘JUSTICE FOR EDGEL JOY DUROLFO’ FACEBOOK PAGE

Despite the reiteration of authorities that they have yet to determine whether or not there was foul play in the death of hotel assistant manager Edgel Joy Durolfo, her mother believes she was murdered.

James Tiu, a friend of Durolfo and the family’s spokesperson, told the Inquirer on Thursday that Evangel, the victim’s mother, also wanted the police to charge the four people who were with her daughter when she died on Friday.

“We want [justice]. [Evangel] hopes that charges will be filed against those who [should be held liable for Durolfo’s death].  She believes the four have something to do with [Durolfo’s] death,” Tiu said.

Durolfo—the 26-year-old VIP Premium Services assistant of Solaire Resort and Casino in Parañaque City—died on Friday at a hospital after she was brought there around 4 a.m. by her fiancé, Rodney Ynchausti, and their friends Josiebell Bea Lim Uy, Molo Hwang and Paulo Egoc.

Just hours earlier, the five had checked into a room at the hotel where, based on Ynchausti’s statement to Solaire security investigators, they all took ecstasy pills.

Ynchausti claimed that after taking the pill, Durolfo complained of difficulty in breathing, prompting them to give her a bath and let her rest on the bed. When they noticed that her nails had started to turn black, they brought her to the hotel clinic where the doctor on duty advised them to take her to a hospital.

Although Ynchausti, Lim, Hwang and Egoc have all given statements to the hotel security officers, they have yet to talk to the police.

Earlier, the parents of Durolfo—who was already unconscious when she was brought to the hospital—questioned why she had bruises on her arms.

Durolfo was laid to rest around 3 p.m. yesterday at Heavens Memorial Park in Antipolo City, Rizal. After the funeral, Tiu told the Inquirer that Evangel filed on Tuesday murder charges against Ynchausti and his three friends in the Parañaque City Prosecutor’s Office. A check with the office, however, came up negative.

“They are free to do that if they did file [a case]. We will just attach the other police documents like the police report [and] autopsy to the documents they filed,” Senior Supt. Ariel Andrade, Parañaque police chief, said.

No update from cops

Tiu also criticized the police for not keeping them updated on their investigation. “We are the ones who keep on [calling them] to follow up [the case],” he said.

But according to Andrade, investigators have yet to establish if a crime had indeed been committed in Durolfo’s case.

“That will depend on the results of the autopsy on the victim. We are finishing the progress report pertinent to the case then we can get a copy of the autopsy,” he said. Earlier, Andrade told the Inquirer that they expected to get the autopsy report on Thursday.

He said police investigators on Wednesday night conducted a reenactment of the Feb. 25 incident at the hotel room where the victim and her friends had stayed.

He added that Durolfo’s cell phone, which was turned over by Evangel to the police, had been submitted to the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime division for analysis. A source, however, said that the messages in the phone confirmed that the victim had talked to someone about buying ecstasy pills before her death.