Ramona Bautista makes headlines in Istanbul

Ramona Bautista, one of the suspects in the October 28 killing of her brother Ramgen Revilla, has made headlines not only in the Philippines but in Istanbul, Turkey as well. According to a report on GMA News TV’s Balitanghali, Ramona and her Turkish husband, Engin Tuna Bulbuloglu, have since fled their home in Istanbul after news of her alleged involvement in Ramgen’s murder spread in the city. "Turkish people need to see these kinds in newspapers and we decided to publish it in the first page, and we got a lot of attention," said Vatan managing editor and foreign news chief Ugur Kocbas in the report. Bulbuloglu had told the Vatan in a phone interview that he refused to believe the accusations against his wife. "Nothing will come out of this incident. Everything is merely made up of allegations. No one can touch us," he was quoted as saying. The couple is now believed to be in North Cyprus, where Bulbuloglu also has business in, according to the television report.

Ramona, 22, has until Friday to submit her counter-testimony and should she fail to do so, the prosecutor will have to release a resolution without her side. Her younger brother, 18-year-old Ramon Joseph “RJ" Bautista, has already waived his right to a preliminary investigation and is already under police custody. Also detained are two other suspects, John Michael Nartea and Roy Francis Tolisoram, who allegedly attacked Ramgen under the orders of RJ and Ramona. RJ’s scheduled arraignment on Wednesday was postponed after his lawyer, Dennis Manzanal, filed a motion to quash. Flight to Hong Kong Ramona left the Philippines on November 4, a week after the attack on Ramgen, 23 and his girlfriend, Janelle Manahan, who survived the attack. Last week, Parañaque police said they were considering filling obstruction of justice charges against Ramona for giving conflicting statements to investigators about the incident. Ramona earlier said her previous testimony was made-up out of shame because she left her elder brother and Manahan at the crime scene. An autopsy report by the National Bureau of Investigation revealed that Ramgen died of a fatal stab wound in the heart. He also sustained 10 stab wounds, three incised wounds, and one gunshot wound. Manahan, meanwhile, survived multiple gunshots to her face and shoulder. Last week, she underwent facial surgery to fix four facial fractures that she sustained during the attack. Manahan has since been recovering well, she announced on Twitter last Sunday, tweeting for the first time since the attack. — with Bea Cupin/RSJ, GMA News