2 suspects in Bulacan kids’ slay nabbed

MANILA, Philippines — Two principal suspects in the murder of two children in San Jose del Monte City in Bulacan have been arrested, police said yesterday.

Romeo Ruzon, 41, and his 17-year-old stepson were arrested on Friday in Sampaloc, Manila, where they hid after they reportedly killed a girl and a boy, aged 11 and eight, respectively.

The suspects were neighbors of the children, who were earlier reported missing by their relatives.

The victims’ bodies were found by residents in a forested area in Barangay Graceville on May 12.

The victims’ faces showed signs of having been hit with a rock, according to Philippine National Police chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar.

Probers recovered from the scene a rock with bloodstains, a wooden stick and a rubber strap cut from a tire.

Results of the laboratory examinations conducted on the bodies showed the girl was raped, Eleazar said.

The pieces of evidence gathered by investigators and witnesses’ accounts led police to tag Ruzon as a person of interest in the case.

It was Ruzon’s partner and brother who accompanied a police team to Sampaloc.

Ruzon was brought back to San Jose del Monte and detained at the police station.

Authorities said Ruzon owned up to the crime and executed an extrajudicial confession in the presence of his lawyer.

Ruzon implicated his minor stepson in the murder.

The boy admitted his involvement and also executed an extrajudicial confession, police said.