We often forget that Metro Manila commuters are at risk.
Last week, two women — aged 22 and 27 — were raped by the driver of a colorum UV Express shuttle and his accomplice.
The women had boarded the van in Quezon Avenue-EDSA on Fri night, Jun 10. As the vehicle went through Batasan Hills, the driver and his accomplice allegedly declared a robbery. They tied up the victims and took away their valuables.
The men then took turns driving the vehicle. While one of them was driving, the other was raping the tied-up suspects. It was already Sat morning, Jun 11, when the two men dumped the women, still bound up, along Sauyo Road in Quezon City.
As soon as they could, the two women quickly sought the help of the police.
Police later reviewed CCTV footage taken along Sauyo Road and identified the van by its license plate number. They eventually got the name of the van driver, Wilfredo Lorenzo. That was when they found out that the said van was not authorized to function as a UV Express.
“Authorities arrested Lorenzo while he was picking up passengers in Commonwealth Avenue on Monday. A plastic sachet containing suspected shabu was recovered from his van. The suspect also tested positive for drug use,” reports ABS-CBN News.
Lorenzo was later brought to Camp Caringal. On Wed, Jun 15, the two rape victims positively identified him.
The report noted: “The women and their family members were enraged. They ended up attacking Lorenzo and had to be restrained by policemen. The victims later appealed to President-elect Rodrigo Duterte to fulfill his promise of reinstating the death penalty for perpetrators of heinous crimes.”
One of the victims was sobbing as she said, “President, kailangan namin ng tulong niyo. Wala nang dapat mabuhay na ganyan, maraming mabibiktima. Kaya kong manindigan, patayin niyo lang siya.”
(“Mr. President, we need your help. People like him should not be allowed to live because they’ll victimize many more women. I ask you to kill him.”)
Meanwhile, Quezon City Police District-Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit (CIDU) chief Insp. Rodel Marcelo said they have released a cartographic sketch of Lorenzo’s accomplice, identified only as alias “Buddy.” (See below.)
Marcelo added that he believes that Lorenzo and his accomplice may also be behind other similar cases in the adjoining Makati City and Rizal province.
Lorenzo has been charged with rape, robbery, and illegal possession of drugs.
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