Investigators determine remains belong to old man

A joint FBI and Department of Public Safety investigation was able to establish that the human bones found in Kagman III on Sunday could possibly belong to an old man, even as a family that has become familiar with tragedy believes that the remains belong to 72-year-old Ricardo Muna Quitugua.

DPS commissioner Ramon Mafnas said the case has been classified as a homicide as he noted that a municipality identification card was found in the article of clothing that was recovered at the scene where most of the bones were found.

Elbert Quitugua, grandfather of the missing Faloma and Maleina Luhk sisters, told Saipan Tribune yesterday that the ID card recovered by the investigators belongs to his uncle, Ricardo Muna Quitugua.

A cashier at CYC Kagman Market disclosed that they have a daily morning customer—an old man—who never showed up the past two weeks.

Authorities have yet to confirm whether the remains indeed belong to Ricardo Quitugua.

At a press briefing yesterday at the Department of Corrections’ conference room, Press Secretary Angel Demapan said DPS and FBI officials are now working to confirm whether or not the person on the covered ID card may be the same person whose remains were discovered.

Demapan said after consultation between DPS and FBI authorities following a close examination of the human remains, investigators have evidence supporting that the bones are in fact human.

Demapan said a dental examination conducted on the lower jaw indicates that the bones could possibly belong to an adult man, approximately 70 years or older in age.

“Given that the medical examiner in Guam is currently unavailable, efforts are still ongoing to seek the services of a forensic pathologist or medical examiner to determine the cause of death,” he said.

The press secretary said DPS is in the process of reviewing its missing persons data for any indication that would shed light on the unknown identity of the remains presumed to belong to an adult.

“However, we have not received a missing persons report to correlate with the human remains that is the subject of the ongoing investigation, which we believe to be only a few weeks old relative to the time of death,” Demapan said.

He said in an effort to preserve the integrity of the evidence and the investigation process, DPS is requesting the continued patience of the public to allow investigators to process the crime scene adequately and properly.

“Crime scenes, as in any jurisdiction, are restricted areas and accessed only by authorized law enforcement personnel and professionals assisting in the processing the area,” Demapan said.

Mafnas said they will not reveal the name of the recovered ID card until they are definite on the identity of the remains.

Mafnas said he has no comment whether a weapon was recovered at the scene.

The commissioner said the body was lying on the surface and not buried.

A dog looking for a bone to chew on Sunday morning led to authorities’ discovery of a set of human remains at a homestead area in Kagman III.

Elbert Quitugua told Saipan Tribune that the FBI confirmed to him that the remains were not his missing granddaughters Faloma and Maleina Luhk and that investigators recovered at the scene an ID of his uncle, Ricardo Muna Quitugua.

Elbert Quitugua said he checked the shack of his uncle located near the scene where the bones were found and that Ricardo was indeed not there.

Elbert Quitugua said their uncle was a loner, had no family, and stayed in a shack.

He said the family believes that robbery could be the possible motive behind the death as his uncle has a $674 monthly pension from Supplemental Security Income.

Elbert Quitugua said since his uncle has no car, somebody would pick him up to get his pension money deposited in one of the banks.

He said his uncle lives alone in a shack with no power and located near the area where his remains were found.

“Some people would rob his house, harassing him. They hated him,” Elbert Quitugua said.

He said the area where the bones were found was his uncle’s daily routine path in the morning to buy newspapers, cigarettes, food, and other items.

He said neighbors in the area have been wondering why the old man has not been seen the past two weeks.

Elbert Quitugua said his uncle used to work as a maintenance worker at Coral Ocean Point and he was last employed as groundskeeper at Laolao Bay Resort.

Anicia Q. Tomokane, brother of Elbert Quitugua, said his uncle is her father’s youngest brother and that he is the remaining survivor of all the siblings.

“We’re so sad that he had to die this way,” Tomokane said. “My dad passed away two years ago and one of his wishes when he was getting so sick was to check on uncle Rick.”