Ex-police officers arrested for slaughter of Israeli linked to Philippines land scam

Two former police officers were arrested on Tuesday in the Philippines, and another was detained for alleged involvement in the disappearance and murder of Yitzhak Cohen and his fiancée, beauty queen Geneva Lopez, local sources reported.

In a press briefing at Camp Crame on Monday, Interior Minister Benhur Abalos and Philippine National Police Chief General Rommel Marbil told the media about the two suspects, adding they had a “significant role” in the murder.

The two former police officers – Michael Angelo Guyang and Rommel Abuzo – are suspected of shooting the couple over a land dispute. “Guyang did not want to give up the land he had mortgaged to Geneva,” said Criminal Investigation and Detection Group of the Philippine National Police Officer Leo Francisco. “Guyang said there was also a buyer for the land he had mortgaged and introduced Abuzo to Geneva as the buyer.”

Three out of 7 persons of interest in the killing of beauty queen Geneva Lopez and her Israeli fiancé Yitzhak Cohen are former policemen, the PNP confirmed.READ: https://t.co/Clqw5GpMHX pic.twitter.com/KBstPxY99z

— ABS-CBN News (@ABSCBNNews) July 8, 2024

“From that point, they arranged to meet, and the two former police officers shot the couple,” Francisco added.“The day before, based on our investigation, Guyang and Abuzo discussed how to deal with the couple. That’s when they hatched the plan to kill them.”

However, Marbil also suggested that the primary objective of the murder was robbery, stating that investigators are examining that possibility, Philippine’s CBN television network ABS-CBN reported on Monday.

According to another report, Guyang previously stated he had met the couple and traveled with them to inspect the land they had possibly intended to buy at Armenia village in Tarlac City. In his sworn statement, Guyang claimed the meeting was short.

Philippines Land Scam

The police suspect multiple people involved in the crime: the two former police officers who were arrested, another former police officer, identified as Jeffrey Santos, who was detained, and at least two more who are still at large.

The former police officers were arrested as part of a police illegal possession of firearms investigation on Saturday, the Philippine Daily Inquirer further reported. Since their arrest, the suspects have been named as persons of interest in connection with the Cohen-Lopez incident, and on Monday, police confirmed they are suspects.

This development came two days after the couple’s Nissan car, which they drove to inspect the land they had intended to purchase, was found burned in Capas town in the Tarlac province. A few days later, the bodies of Cohen and his fiancée were found in a nearby quarry.

Agricultural land scams are well-known to authorities in the Philippines, where locals lure foreigners into purchasing land, swindle them, and, in extreme cases, murder them and dispose of their bodies.

Natapos na ang 2 linggong paghahanap sa nawalang Pinay beauty queen na si Geneva Lopez at fiancé niyang Israeli. Pero hindi ito happy ending.Balikan ang nangyari sa kasong ito-na nagsimula sa nasunog na sasakyan–kasama si Gracie Rutao sa Tarlac. | via @Patrol_Pilipino pic.twitter.com/mGaTTMs6zo

— ABS-CBN News (@ABSCBNNews) July 8, 2024

“There was hope that they would be found alive. There were extensive searches, and the local police were optimistic. Unfortunately, that did not happen,” noted a source familiar with the case details and in contact with officials at the Foreign Ministry.

“It appears they were lured into a trap, a sort of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ scenario, to avoid paying them the money owed. They were invited to a meeting, kidnapped, and murdered to eliminate evidence and avoid paying the debt.”