PAO dismisses PNP findings on De Guzman’s DNA

Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) Chief Persida Rueda Acosta dismissed on Monday the latest finding of the Philippine National Police (PNP) that the body found in Nueva Ecija was not that of 14-year-old Reynaldo De Guzman.

In a press conference, Acosta asserted that DNA samples are only reliable if the specimen is safe because otherwise, “the result could be different.”

“The parents have positively identified the body based on what he was wearing and markings,” pointed out Acosta.

Acosta also stressed that after their comparative analysis of De Guzman’s face based on his pictures and that of the body found in Nueva Ecija, they have confirmed that both referred to the same person.

De Guzman was the reported companion of 19-year-old Carl Arnaiz, who went missing on August 18 and found dead 10 days later at a morgue in Caloocan City. KGA