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Campbell's remains taken to the Loyola morgue in Makati


(Update 2) Amid tight security, the remains of US Peace Corps volunteer Julia Campbell arrived at around 2 p.m. at the Philippine National Police (PNP) headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City for autopsy. Minutes after the helicopters touched down, Campbell's remains were loaded into the embassy's blue Chevrolet van and taken outside Camp Crame to the Loyola Memorial Chapels in Guadalupe, Makati City and kept at the morgue while waiting for the American pathologist who "assist" in the autopsy procedures. Campbell's remains were in a black body bag transported from Batad, Ifugao by an Air Force UH-1H helicopter, followed by another chopper that carried accompanying officials. Matthew Lussenhop, the US Embassy's first secretary and spokesman, said an American forensic pathologist will be arriving from the United States "sometime soon...within the next few days" to "help out with the autopsy" of Campbell's remains. Lussenhop said he could not identify the pathologist by name yet. Asked if the US Embassy will focus on determining the cause of Campbell's death, Lussenhop said: "Certainly. It's an important case for us. it's a tragic case." The United States Embassy in Manila has confirmed that the body discovered in Batad village Campbell. Embassy officials kept quiet about the possible cause of Cambell's death, saying that "Philippine authorities will make the final pronouncement" on the matter. "The Philippine authorities have the lead in the investigation and so forth, and we will continue to work with them as the investigation goes forward," the embassy official told newsmen at Camp Crame. Lussenhop reiterated that Campbell's death would not affect the deployment of US Peace Corps in the Philippines. "The Peace Corps has been here since 1961 and there's no plan for any kind of pullout." Paul Jones, US Embassy Chargé d’Affaires, said in the statement: "Thank you to the PNP, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the local and provincial governments in the Banaue area, and the many local guides and volunteers who spent countless hours searching for Julia in difficult terrain." The US government earlier offered a $10,000-reward for information about Campbell's whereabouts. The Cordillera regional police relayed the US Embassy's confirmation earlier in the day during a radio interview on dzBB radio. Earlier in the day, a PNP official said the death of 40-year-old Campbell appeared to be a case of homicide. Police Director Geary Barias, chief of the PNP for Investigation and Detection Management, said probers in Batad village in Banaue, Ifugao were able to come to this theory after inspecting Campbell's remains. Asked if the PNP officially considers Campbell as a homicide victim, Barias said in a television interview: "That's how the the investigators on the ground, especially the police director of Ifugao City [sees it,] based on visual investigation that was done [on the cadaver]." Barias said the autopsy in Camp Crame would provide a "more conclusive" picture of what happened to Campbell. He referred to the site in Batad village where the body was recovered as a "crime scene," which provided "environmental information" on what transpired. Campbell was last seen on April 8 as she was supposed to go on a hike at a hilly area in Banaue. Separate reports said, however, she asked that a tourist guide accompany her and that she would meet with a masseuse. Interviewed earlier in the day, Cordillera regional police head Chief Superintendent Raul Gonzales said robbery appears to be the most likely motive behind Campbell's death. "Meron tayong witness na lumabas. Ide-develop natin ang information na sinabi niya. As of now isa pa lang (We have at least one witness who has agreed to testify. We are processing the information we initially got. As of now, there is only one witness)," Gonzales said in an interview on dzBB radio. He refused to give more details about the witness, citing "security" reasons. Gonzales also said the police are now verifying information that suggests Campbell planned to tour the Ifugao Rice Terraces but got waylaid by robbers. - GMANews.TV
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