A 14-year-old girl was found dead and hogtied without her undergarments  inside their home in Caloocan City Tuesday night (July 14).

Police identified the victim as Garlene Teria and the suspect as 37-year-old Diomedes Llames.

According to a police report, Teria's body was discovered by her mother after returning to their house in Pangarap Village around 7 p.m.

The victim was lying face down and covered with blood. Her hands and feet were tied using a nylon cord and her neck sustained several stab wounds. It was not yet clear if the victim was also molested.

Police said Mary Jean Teria, the victim's mother, pointed to Llames, their neighbor, as the person likely to be behind her daughter's killing because she saw him coming out of their house when she arrived. Llames' shirt was stained with blood, she said.

"Nakita ko po siyang lumabas po na duguan… Doon pala siya galing sa bahay. Pagtingin ko sa bahay, duguan na 'yung anak ko, sumuka na ng dugo, ubos na 'yung dugo (I saw him come out all bloody... It turned out he came from our house. When I looked in our house, my daughter was covered in blood, she had vomited blood, her blood had all run out)," she said in a phone interview with reporters.

Mary Jean said she and the suspect had several heated arguments in the past,which might cause him to bear a grudge against her. Their most recent argument was when the suspect accused her of being infected with coronavirus disease (COVID-19) after she was sick for three days.

"Sinumbong ako sa barangay, huwag daw ako payagang mag-manicure, kasi baka mahawaan daw ako ng COVID, mahawaan ko rin sila (He told on me to the barangay officials and asked them to prohibit me from giving manicures, because I might catch COVID and give it to others)," she said, adding that the incident left her jobless for two months during the time when all Metro Manila residents were placed under lockdown.

"Two months po akong di nag-manicure. Pero gumagawa ako ng paraan para pumuslit, 'yun ang madalas naming pag-awayan (For two months, I didn't give any manicure services. But I made a way to sneak out, that's one of the reasons for our frequent arguments)," she added.

She said she was like "a robber" who "was sneaking out" to be able to make money.

"Ano gagawin ko, wala kakainin kung di ako magikot-ikot sa kalsada. Ayoko rin po na maubusan ako ng pambili, dahil ang hirap mangutang. Pare-parehos  nasa pandemic, walang hanapbuhay mga tao (What was I to do, we would have nothing to eat if I didn't roam around the streets. I also didn't  want to run out of funds because it's hard to borrow money. We're all in the pandemic, people have no livelihood)," she added.

Mary Jean also surmised the suspect might have killed her daughter because of his situation. She said he was "starving" after losing his job.

“Naalala niyo ‘yung bus na nalaglag ‘yung pasahero niya? Siya po ‘yun Do you remember that bus where the driver's passenger fell out? That was him),” she said. "Matagal ng walang trabaho, isa po 'yun sa  pinag-iinitan niya ng ulo (He has been out of work for a long time, that's another reason for his anger)." 

On April 3, 2019, Llames, then a bus driver, saw his passenger Mary Joy Eata, then 39, fall out of the bus he was driving when he dropped her off at a no-unloading zone at the approach to the Ortigas flyover on EDSA, causing her to sustain injuries and trauma.

Eata filed a complaint against Llames with the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, which said at the time that the complaint was referred to their Legal and Legislative Affairs Office for the filing of charges. 

Mary Jean, who rents a house in a compound where Llames is one of her neighbors, said he made it clear to her several times that he wanted her and her daughter out of their place, and would always pick fights with her.

"Pilit ako nakiki-pagkaibigan kasi alam kong hindi maganda ugali niya.

Pero pinapakisamahan ko. Ang gusto niya, doon sa namamahala ng may-ari ng bahay na tinitirhan namin, paalisin na ako doon. Saan naman ako titira? (I was trying to befriend him because I knew he has an ugly character. Still I tried to get along with him. He wanted the landlord of our house to kick us out. But where would I live?)" she added.

A neighbor sought assistance from police, who immediately responded to the crime scene.

Mary Jean wants justice for her daughter. She is also seeking financial help as she only depends on providing manicure and pedicure services for a living.

Police are still conducting a manhunt operation against Llames.