DFA visits 2 Filipinos held for Tokyo couple’s death

Department of Foreign Affairs. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

“Nadamay lang ako.” (I just got dragged into this.)

These were the words of an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) who was arrested in Japan for allegedly abandoning the dead bodies of a couple in Tokyo, Foreign Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said on Saturday.

“He was very distressed when the embassy visited him [and] he had some hand injuries,” De Vega told the Inquirer on Saturday, referring to Bryan dela Cruz, one of two Filipinos being linked to the death of Norihiro and Kimi Takahashi.

Dela Cruz was not able to explain further how he got involved in the case “because he was distraught” when the officials of the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo visited him at his detention cell on Thursday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) official said.

“The deal is when the embassy visits them, they should not speak about the case. There were also Japanese police [officers] listening to them so they could not [speak about it],” De Vega said.

Hazel Morales, a Filipino who is now a permanent resident in Japan, was arrested also for allegedly abandoning the dead couple.

When theembassy visited her, Morales, who denied the allegations, said she was OK and in “good condition.”

The investigation of the case is still ongoing, De Vega said, adding that the “Embassy thinks it might get prolonged because [the authorities] are picking up a lot of evidence.”

“We don’t know when the investigation will finish, all the news reports coming out about this or that … are coming out from Japanese media, which has its own sources, but this is not official information that has been revealed to the embassy,” De Vega said.

“No official complaint has been filed against them so the embassy cannot confirm. Of course, the role of the embassy is to help them because we don’t want them to get in danger,” he added.

Legal assistance

Morales reportedly said that she earlier had a relationship with the couple’s son, while Dela Cruz denied having any connection with the victims.

De Vega said the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) is paying for Dela Cruz’s lawyer, while Morales has her own counsel, appointed by a Japanese court.

“We are offering her, if she wants, a private lawyer, and we will pay for it,” De Vega said.

DMW Officer in Charge Hans Leo Cacdac had earlier instructed his agency’s Migrant Workers Office in Tokyo to ensure that adequate legal assistance will be provided to the detained OFW.

“As we condole with the families of the deceased Japanese couple, we assure our ”kababayan’ and his family of our utmost assistance in close coordination with Ambassador Milen Garcia and the … Embassy in Tokyo,” Cacdac said in a statement.

The two Filipinos were seen coming out of the couple’s house in Tokyo’s Adachi Ward, based on CCTV footage.

Local reports said the bodies were discovered with multiple stab wounds and there were signs of struggle.