Police try to take ‘Kulot’ from wake

Reynaldo de Guzman, 14. File Photo

Alleged members of the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) reportedly tried to take the remains of 14-year-old Reynaldo “Kulot” De Guzman from his wake in Cainta on Tuesday.

A source privy to the incident said the police went to the house of the teenager’s family around 1 p.m. on Tuesday and allegedly insisted on taking the boy’s body, claiming it was not De Guzman.

This incident came a day after the PNP released the result of the DNA test it conducted purportedly on the dead teenager, saying that the body found floating on a river in Gapan, Nueva Ecija was not that of De Guzman.

According to the source, the parents refused to give the body to the alleged policemen, maintaining that the burial of their son would push through on Wednesday, which then led to a commotion.

The source said De Guzman’s mother, Lina, panicked and had to be taken out from the scene. A psychiatrist from the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) had previously evaluated Lina due to signs of post-traumatic stress disorder.

The source added that the policemen eventually backed off allegedly upon receiving orders from the “higher ups”. /kga