KIDAPAWAN CITY (MindaNews / 15 May) – The cash reward for the arrest of a suspect in a rape-murder case in Kidapawan City went to the police of Maitum town in Sarangani province.
City Mayor Joseph Evangelista handed Tuesday the P100,000 bounty to Senior Insp. Juanito Castillo, police chief of Maitum, at the city hall, a day after the mayor presented to media Rene Montano Bueno, the suspect.
Maitum police arrested Bueno with help from informants in Maitum who were able to identify the suspect through his photos which were posted on social media.
Bueno, a former hardware store employee, allegedly raped and killed his 3-year old cousin Ella Bueno on May 6 in Barangay Singao, Kidapawan.
Supt. Ramel Hojilla, chief of Kidapawan police said Bueno escaped hours after the incident and sought help from a driver-friend who brought him to Maitum.
In Maitum, Hojilla said, Bueno survived by begging for money and food at the public market.
“But because of the social media, there were those who noticed Bueno and reported him to the Maitum PNP. When Bueno found out he could no longer escape, he yielded to the police,” he said.
Bueno, now detained at the city police office, is facing rape with murder, a non-bailable offense. (Malu Cadelina Manar/MindaNews)