Dacera Case Preliminary Investigation Starts, Here's Why It Matters
State prosecutors will open on Wednesday their preliminary investigation into the death of flight attendant Christine Dacera, which will determine whether or not a case will be filed in court and against whom.
The Makati City prosecutor ordered the preliminary investigation because "there are certain matters that need to be clarified to determine the participation and culpability of each respondent."
Three men who were with Dacera at the hotel room where she was found dead on New Year's Day were released after several days in detention to give way to the new inquiry.
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What will the preliminary investigation determine?
Probable cause. Meaning, what case should be filed and whether or not it should be elevated to the courts. Police initially filed a complaint of rape with homicide.
Who will be at the preliminary investigation?
People identified as persons of interest have been invited to the Jan. 13 preliminary investigation. These are the men who were with Dacera before she died.
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What questions are unanswered?
What caused Dacera's death? The initial police autopsy said she died from an aortic aneurysm or a bloated vein, which is rare for a 23-year-old. Her family believes there is foul play and that she was sexually molested. Results of a second autopsy are pending.
Was Dacera drugged? The flight attendant reportedly told one of her companions that she suspected her drink was spiked. Investigators recovered enough fluids from her remains prior to the second autopsy to determine whether this was the case.
What happened behind closed doors? CCTV footage showed that the party was larger than what Dacera had declared to her parents as she shuffled between her room at the City Garden Hotel and an adjacent room.
Dacera was the only woman in both hotel rooms and her friends who were with her in Room 2209 said they could not have raped their friend since they were gay. They said they believed the men in the other room were gay, too.