Talisayan police have identified Lloyd Bagtong as the primary suspect in the killing and beheading of an unidentified woman approximately 4 kilometers from his home in rural Barangay Punta.
The headless victim was found with both hands tied together and without an upper body garment on Thursday, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported, citing police. Authorities suspect the act took place at dawn, due to “fresh” blood being found at the scene.
Witnesses informed police that Bagtong was seen walking along the road with the woman prior to her murder.
“The suspect said he killed the victim because she was speaking in English,” Captain Maribeth Ramoga, the Talisayan police chief, revealed to the Inquirer on December 5, adding that her use of the language “probably irritated him.”
Ramoga disclosed that Bagtong confessed to the crime and went on to admit that he was drunk and hungry when he decided to decapitate the woman with a sanggot - or sickle - and make off with her head, according to SunStar CDO.
The 21-year-old also said he ultimately disposed of the victim’s skull in a hole near his home after using her brains as toppings over a bed of cooked rice.
Officers recovered a sanggot stashed at Bagtong’s waist and a blood-stained cloth - believed to have been used to transport the woman’s head - from his home.
Based on testimonies from local residents, authorities suspect Bagtong may be suffering from a mental condition. Nevertheless, the 21-year-old has been charged with murder and is currently in custody at the Talisayan Police Station.