Assault victim appeals for aid

STA. CRUZ

Raphael Sta. Cruz was driving to work on July 1 when he offered a ride to a former high school classmate who attacked him without any provocation, sending him to the hospital.

The attack on the 29-year-old Sta. Cruz, who was on his way to Makati City, left him with stab wounds in the neck, right eye and mouth on top of internal bleeding affecting the esophagus.

The suspect, Leandro Amador, who has surrendered to the police, claimed that he was suffering from personal problems at that time.

Sta. Cruz has since been confined at Makati Medical Center where he underwent a series of operations, resulting in a hospital bill of P700,000 as of July 11.

“I am worried because aside from another surgery scheduled for his broken nose, he might lose the sight in his right eye. I feel alone because my husband was just hospitalized himself a few weeks ago due to pneumonia,” the victim’s 56-year-old mother, Mona Liza, said.

Sta. Cruz graduated cum laude at De La Salle’s St. Benilde College in 2009 with a degree in multimedia art. He presently works at the sales department of tobacco company Philip Morris.

Mona Liza Sta. Cruz can be reached at 0932-4597503. Donations may be deposited in the BPI account of her other son, Gabriel Sta. Cruz (#1599430764).