Update on Former DPWH Usec. Cathy Cabral’s Devices & the Investigation over her Death
FORMER DPWH USEC – The Department of Public Works and Highways turned over the files and computer of Cathy Cabral to the Office of the Ombudsman.
The death of former DPWH Undersecretary Maria Catalina “Cathy” Cabral who was found dead in Benguet gathered different speculations. Her sudden demise a few weeks after her name was dragged in the flood control mess which was followed by her resignation as the undersecretary of the public works department is surrounded by questions.
The body of Cabral was found unconscious and unresponsive at around 20-30 meters near the Bued River in Tuba, Benguet. Based on the initial report of the police authorities, the former Public Works official died from an alleged fall from a cliff.
Ricardo Hernandez, the driver of the former DPWH Usec, claimed that Cabral allegedly asked to be left at the Kennon Road. She was supposedly sitting beside the road when he left and he could no longer find her there when she returned after an hour.
According to Hernandez, he allegedly looked for Cabral and he returned at the hotel where they checked-in to see if she was there but there was supposedly negative presence which urged him to report to the police authorities. Her body was found after a few hours but they had a hard time getting her body.
Following the unexpected demise of the former Public Works official who is linked to the flood control mess, the Ombudsman previously ordered the local authorities in Benguet to preserve the gadgets including the mobile phone of former DPWH Usec Cathy Cabral.
The Cabral family refused the call for an autopsy on the remains of the former Public Works official. According to her husband, Cesar Cabral, they believe that his wife died due to an accident. He also stressed that he confirms that the remains are of his wife and even their children confirm that the dead woman is their mother.
The investigations on the death of former DPWH Usec Cathy Cabral continued. The authorities returned to the site where her body was found as well as the hotel where she last stayed prior to her sudden demise. Based on a report on ABS-CBN News, Cabral tested positive for antidepressant as per the toxicology report of the Philippine National Police (PNP).
Recently, the DPWH also turned over the computer and files of Cabral to the Ombudsman. According to the public works department, it was the computer she used during her 10-year stint in the office. Amid the questions on her death, the alleged photo of Cabral’s driver with the former DPWH Usec before her death circulated on social media.