Joselito Malig

Forensic Pathologist Dr. Raquel Fortun during the Quad Com hearing at the House of Represantatives on December 12, 2024. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

Lyza Aquino

ABS-CBN News

<p>MANILA - Forensic pathologist Raquel Fortun on Thursday raised concerns over the handling of the bodies recovered from the April 19 encounter between government troops and suspected rebels in Toboso, Negros Occidental, as she presented initial autopsy findings during a press briefing at the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City</p><p>The clash between the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the New People’s Army left 19 people dead, including University of the Philippines Diliman student leader Alyssa Alano, community journalist and Kabataan party-list nominee RJ Nichole Ledesma, and Filipino-American activists Lyle Prijoles and Kai Sorem.</p><p>The military has maintained that all those killed were members of the NPA. </p><p>However, other groups have disputed this claim, saying some of the fatalities were civilians engaged in community work.</p><div> </div><div><strong>&#x27;CORNED BEEF&#x27; INSULT</strong></div><p>During the briefing, Fortun also called out online remarks comparing the fatalites’ remains to “corned beef,” saying such comments are disrespectful to the dead.</p><p>“Naalala ninyo si corned beef… it’s insulting that the remains were reduced to corned beef,” she said.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/4/27/cpp-says-9-fatalities-in-toboso-military-operations-were-noncombatants-1846"><strong>Reds say 9 fatalities in Toboso military operations were noncombatants </strong></a></div><p>“No, they don’t look anything like corned beef. I’ve seen a lot of dead bodies. You know what they look like? Tao. People. People with injuries. People who were killed. And that could be you.”</p><p>Fortun urged the public to show respect for victims of violence.</p><p>“Igalang ninyo ang mga patay. Lalo na ang mga biktima ng violence. Everybody please step up, nakakahiya naman tayo.”</p><p>The Commission on Human Rights has also launched an investigation into the incident.</p><div> </div><div><strong>INITIAL AUTOPSY FINDINGS</strong></div><p>Fortun said her team has so far examined five bodies and documented multiple gunshot wounds in several of them.</p><p>“I had doctors helping me out. I keep telling the doctors to document, document, document,” she said during a press briefing.</p><p>“There is going to be a report, but that takes time. Doon nakasulat yung mga detalye.”</p><p>According to Fortun, X-rays were conducted primarily to identify bullets recovered from the bodies.</p><p>“Three of them I would say had multiple gunshot wounds, really serious injuries and we recovered bullets,” she said.</p><p>She noted that at least three of the five bodies she autopsied sustained gunshot wounds to the head, while all five had wounds to the trunk. </p><p>Some had multiple injuries affecting the head, torso, and extremities.</p><p>“The bullet we recovered? They are consistent with the weapons used, high velocity rifles,” she said.</p><p>However, Fortun said several questions remain unanswered, especially due to the condition of the bodies and the lack of proper documentation.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/5/2/teodoro-rejects-possible-peace-talks-with-npa-following-toboso-encounter-2118"><strong>Teodoro rejects peace talks with Reds following Toboso encounter</strong></a></div><p>“The others are still for analysis. Yung dalawa, obvious na sugat, but there are other questions I have no answers yet like ‘hindi naman tinamaan doon bakit siya may hemorrhage sa chest,’ pathology stuff.”</p><div>  </div><div><strong>CONCERNS OVER HANDLING OF BODIES, EVIDENCE</strong></div><p>Fortun also questioned the absence of basic homicide investigation procedures, including proper documentation at the scene and the handling of individuals’ clothing.</p><p>“In the first place, all of these cases should’ve undergone basic homicide investigation. Which means, CSI pa lang meron — where they fell, and so on. Do we have that? Where’s that document?” she said.</p><p>She said clothing can provide crucial evidence in shooting incidents.</p><p>“Kapag binaril ka, mabubutas yung damit… that helps me decide. But I only received two bags. Yung isa mislabelled. Yung isa may damit pero unlabelled. So what happened?”</p><p>Fortun also appealed to other families to help clarify the identities of some of the bodies after inconsistencies were discovered.</p><p>“Yung body length hindi tugma sa height niya, yung ngipin hindi tugma, yung mga peklat hindi tugma,” she said.</p><p>“My appeal to the families, tulungan ho ninyo pamilya na namatayan din. Kasi ang sabi ko sa kanila, it will not make sense if you retrieve this body which is not yours.”</p><div> </div><div><strong>QUESTIONS ON FORENSIC PROCEDURES</strong></div><p>Fortun also criticized the continued use of paraffin tests to determine whether someone fired a gun.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/4/27/palace-chr-probe-into-toboso-military-operation-won-t-be-blocked-1632"><strong>Palace: CHR probe into Toboso military operation won’t be blocked</strong></a></div><p>“Thirty years ko nang tinitira yang paraffin test na yan. It’s junk,” she said.</p><p>“In the 21st century, the fact that you’re still doing it, that fact na ginagamit niyo pa rin yan, mahiya naman kayo.”</p><p>She explained that paraffin tests are unreliable, particularly when bodies have been exposed to water.</p><p>“That particular body was in water, nakababad sa tubig. For you to check for what we call gunshot residues, you have to protect the hands… So those tests were junk. Nakakahiya.”</p><div> </div><div><strong>DISTANCE OF GUNFIRE STILL UNCLEAR</strong></div><p>When asked whether the victims were shot at close range, Fortun said the decomposition of the bodies makes it difficult to determine the exact distance.</p><p>“If it’s close range or contact fire, meron yang itim which I did not see. Which I think… I don’t think they were fired close range,” she said.</p><p>“It might be distant. And when you say distant, mahabang-mahabang range yan.”</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/regions/2026/4/27/philippines-says-two-us-citizens-among-19-killed-in-raid-0831"><strong>Philippines says two US citizens among 19 killed in Negros raid </strong></a></div><p>She added that the injuries observed are consistent with the use of high-velocity rifles.</p><div> </div><div><strong>CALLS FOR INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION</strong></div><p>Fortun stressed that an independent, science-based forensic investigation should have been conducted at the scene.</p><p>“You don’t move the bodies. You don’t touch the bodies. You leave them there,” she said.</p><p>“The bodies are evidence. You must hear the version of the dead. Hindi puwedeng yung buhay lang yung pakikinggan mo.”</p><p>“This is a homicide. May pumatay eh. Wala ba tayong accountability?”</p><div> </div><div><strong>FAMILIES SEEK ANSWERS</strong></div><p><strong></strong> Relatives of the fatalities continue to demand transparency and accountability over the deaths.</p><p>“I have a lot of questions. Nothing is transparent,” said Marienne Cuison, wife of Filipino-American human rights advocate Lyle Prijoles.</p><p>“I’m angry. I think it’s 19 lives that were taken. And I think everyone should be angry as well.”</p><p>Lawyer Julianne Agpalo of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers also said there were cases where families may have received the wrong remains.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/4/23/defense-officials-reject-claims-civilians-were-killed-in-negros-occidental-clash-1534">Defense officials reject claims civilians were killed in Negros Occidental clash</a></div><p>“There is some kind of negligence na nangyari kung bakit iba yung bangkay or iba yung katawan na iuwi ng pamilya ni Errol,” she said.</p><p>“For now, we are focusing not only on a possible fact-finding mission but also on recovering the correct body and giving it to the family.”</p><p>Families are awaiting Fortun’s final autopsy report as well as the outcome of the investigation by the Commission on Human Rights.</p><p>ABS-CBN News has reached out to the Philippine National Police, which reportedly retrieved and documented the bodies, for comment.</p>

<p>Forensic pathologist Raquel Fortun on Thursday raised concerns over the handling of the bodies recovered from the April 19 encounter between government troops and suspected rebels in Toboso, Negros Occidental, as she presented initial autopsy findings during a press briefing.</p>

Forensic pathologist Raquel Fortun on Thursday raised concerns over the handling of the bodies recovered from the April 19 encounter between government troops and suspected rebels in Toboso, Negros Occidental, as she presented initial autopsy findings during a press briefing.

'Tao, people': Fortun slams ‘corned beef’ insult on Toboso deaths

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'Tao, people': Fortun slams ‘corned beef’ insult on Toboso deaths

Lyza Aquino,

ABS-CBN News

Published May 07, 2026 08:23 PM PHT

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Dr. Raquel Fortun

forensic pathology

Negros Occidental

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