Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan on Friday, 19 December, urged the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to validate the death of former Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Undersecretary Cathy Cabral.

In a Facebook post, Pangilinan noted that “faking death to escape criminal liability for corruption has happened before.”

“We do not wish to be insensitive if indeed death has been established, but considering that billions of pesos are involved, we call on Sec. Jonvic Remulla to check and validate if the remains of former Usec. Cathy Cabral were properly identified by the authorities concerned,” Pangilinan said.

Remulla, meanwhile, said initial post-mortem results on Cabral showed no indications of foul play.

He added that Cabral’s death would not halt the government’s probe into alleged corruption in flood control projects.

“The death of a person does not mean the wheel of justice will stop turning. We will go after all the thieves, whether they are alive or dead,” Remulla assured.

Authorities said Cabral allegedly fell into a ravine along Kennon Road in Baguio on Thursday evening, 18 December.

Based on the initial investigation, Cabral left Baguio on Thursday afternoon with her driver, traveling toward the lowlands. Along Kennon Road, she reportedly asked the driver to stop and leave her alone. When the driver returned, Cabral was no longer in the area.

Search and rescue teams later found Cabral’s body along the Bued River, estimated to be 20 to 30 meters below the highway.