Cagayan de Oro City Police Office has launched a manhunt for two persons of interest in connection with the killing of Bhea Yna Balus, a 22-year-old working student whose body was found inside a boarding house last week.
Police spokesperson P/Capt. Emelita Simon said investigators are pursuing several leads and continuing to gather evidence to identify those responsible.
The primary person of interest is the victim’s boardmate, Ian Nuñez, a job-order employee assigned to the City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Department.
Authorities stressed that the investigation is ongoing and no charges have been filed as of press time.
In a phone interview on Sunday, CDRRMD chief Nick Jabagat said Nuñez was scheduled for duty on Feb. 16 but did not report for work.
When colleagues later went to check on him at the boarding house, they noticed a strong odor coming from his rented room and alerted police, who subsequently discovered the victim’s body.
Preliminary investigation showed that Balus, a fourth-year BS Management Accounting student at Liceo de Cagayan University, was last seen alive on Feb. 14.
Her body was found on the night of Feb. 19 inside a rented room at a boarding house along Burgos-Gomez Streets in Barangay 7.
Police said a second person of interest has been identified, but the name is being withheld pending verification.
Authorities are continuing background checks to determine the individual’s possible connection to the case.
Simon expressed condolences to the victim’s family and said the police are committed to a thorough and impartial investigation.
