LINGAYEN— The police have alerted parents and guardians to look into the security of their daughters and female relatives on a regular basis because the number of rape cases in the province has increased.

The Women and Children Protection Desk (WCPD) of the Pangasinan Police Provincial Office (PPPO) recorded 121 rape cases from January to May this year.

In an interview over Bombo Radyo Dagupan, PO2 Rose Gutierrez of WCPD said the number of cases year to date is higher by 11 cases compared to the last year’s 110 over the same period.

She said the youngest victim was a six-year-old girl while the oldest was a 70 years old woman.

Gutierrez said that unlike in the past when suspects were mostly related to the victims, most of the suspects today were mostly strangers to the victims.

“Some of the young victims were left alone by parents without guardians overseeing their activities,” she said. “Meanwhile victimized teenagers or young adult were mostly those who went out drinking and partying with strangers sometimes accompanied by use of drugs,” she added.

However, she clarified that the increase in number of documented cases is also largely the result of increased awareness about the crime and need to seek to justice.

“We organized lectures and distribute flyers in schools and urged the public not to be ashamed if they become victims of rape and report so that justice can be had and punish those responsible,” Gutierrez said. (Hilda Austria)

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