
A WITNESS revealed that members of the Tau Gamma Phi fraternity refused to take Adamson University student John Matthew Salilig to the hospital after he suffered a seizure during hazing rites.
Roi Osmond Dela Cruz, a neophyte who underwent hazing with Salilig and two other Tau Gamma members, testified during the investigation of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights.
According to Dela Cruz, after the hazing on February 18 in Biñan, Laguna, they were taken to the house of a certain “Scotty” in Parañaque City to rest.
He said when they arrived at Scotty’s house, he and two other Tau Gamma members who underwent welcoming rites were told to go inside. Salilig stayed inside the vehicle, a blue Ford Everest.
Dela Cruz said he wanted to go to the vehicle where Salilig was staying to get some air after his ordeal. That’s when he saw Salilig having a seizure.
“After I went down, that’s when Matt had a seizure. He was unconscious, and they were poking his mouth until he lost consciousness, and then they took him up to the room,” Dela Cruz said.
“During his seizure, I asked them if they could take him to the hospital. Bonez and Thugz got angry with me because they said it was not allowed,” Dela Cruz added.
Biñan police chief Lt. Col. Virgilio Jopia said “Bonez” and “Thugz” are among the suspects in the deadly hazing and are still at large.
Salilig went missing on February 18. He was last seen wearing a red hoodie at a bus terminal in Manila.
The witness said Salilig was present during a welcoming ceremony for Tau Gamma Phi fraternity. Salilig allegedly was hit at least 70 times with a wooden paddle.
After more than a week, Salilig’s body was found in a shallow grave in Imus, Cavite.