Former UST student stabbed in FEU campus

A FORMER UST student was seriously injured after being stabbed by a group of female teenagers inside Far Eastern University (FEU) campus in Manila last Oct. 2.

Police Officer Aaron Cortez of the Manila Police District Station 4 said investigators were still determining the motive for the attack but were looking at a “lover’s quarrel” angle, which resulted in a conflict between two rival sororities in the university belt area.

However, Joanne Lourdes Reyes, the victim, had denied this in an interview with the Philippine Daily Inquirer last Oct. 6.

A police report obtained by the Varsitarian stated that the 20-year-old victim was invited by a friend to watch an awarding ceremony of a film competition at FEU.

Five to six women, some of them in pink shirts, attacked Reyes and her companion with pepper spray, before stabbing the former.

An FEU student, who asked not to be identified, recounted that at around 6:30 p.m. of Oct. 2, a female in civilian clothes came rushing to her class, telling the professor that a girl had been stabbed.

Students and their professor immediately attended to Reyes, who was seen bleeding profusely at the third floor of FEU’s Science Building, and brought her to the university clinic, the witness said.

FEU officials and security officers then rushed Reyes to Mary Chiles Hospital, a few blocks away from FEU. She was later transferred to Chinese General Hospital.

Cortez said the attending physician found multiple stab wounds on Reyes’ back, abdomen, and one on the head, approximately two centimeters long.

“FEU has extended and offered assistance. But it’s up to them to accept it,” Albert Cabasada III, director of the Admission and External Relations Office of FEU, told the Varsitarian in an interview.

“Unfortunately, the perpetrators were able to get out [of the campus]. But they were captured [on] CCTV [but] medyo blurred kasi mabilis sila e,” he said.

Cabasada added that the weapon was not recovered, and could be “anything like a small pocket knife or a scalpel,” which was “enough to be concealed in a book or vanity kit.”

FEU officials released an official statement confirming the incident the next day.

A few days after, police identified one of the suspects as Cristina Acosta, a fourth year FEU nursing student. She is facing charges of attempted homicide.

“The one who was positively identified [will face suspension] as a preventive measure. It’s a major offense. So internally, it’s explusion. [She] will not be able to study anymore in any school,” Cabasada said.

Tighter security has been implemented in the Morayta campus following the incident, with security guards doing extensive inspections.

‘Not officially enrolled’

Reyes, who had been repeatedly identified as a UST student in various news reports, was not officially enrolled for the first semester of academic year 2012-2013.

Reyes is an irregular Information Technology student who was already in her fourth year.

“Due to financial problems, she was not able to come back and enroll for this semester,” said Information and Computer Studies chair Alex Castro.

The Engineering dean’s office confirmed of Reyes’ status and said she had filed a student leave while she works as a call center agent to save up money for enrollment. Cez Mariela Teresa G. Verzosa