Mother and three children found stabbed to death in their own home as police investigate motive
A mother and her three children were found stabbed to death in their own home as police hunt their alleged killer in the Philippines.
Arlene Dumalte, 42, was with her kids when an armed suspect reportedly barged inside their remote rural house in the quiet town of Josefina in Zamboanga del Sur province.
The family screamed as they were said to have struggled against the intruder before allegedly being hacked and stabbed to their deaths.
The gruesome scene was discovered by village officer Alejo Indangan as he was walking to his farm to feed his pigs on the morning of June 29.
The man was shocked to find Arlene's bloodied arm poking through a hole in the thatched wall of the house.
He and neighbours forced their way in before finding the family's corpses lying far from each other in pools of blood.
One of the children was found face-down on the floor, still clutching a pen beside a notebook he had been writing in.
Police later arrived to collect the single mother and her children, identified as Nashel, 16, Inin, 14, and Arnel, 11.
Authorities said Arlene's boyfriend, whose identity was not disclosed, is being treated as the prime suspect.
Police Lieutenant Julito Pamalaran, local police chief, said: 'The victims suffered bruises and other injuries indicating that there was a struggle to defend themselves.
'They live at a rented house, on a farm owned by the village officer, who visits every day to feed his pigs.
'The main suspect right now is the woman's boyfriend. Her children were against the relationship because their mother was still legally married.'
Authorities said Arlene was a local health worker. She was last seen alive with her children while connecting to a nearby commercial WiFi station.
Arlene's mother, Merna, mourned the deaths and urged the suspect to surrender.
She said: 'Whoever did this had no mercy for my grandchildren. They suffered multiple wounds. You have no heart, no compassion.'
Officials have vowed to catch the family's suspected killer.
