Today in History: The Body of a Woman in Tan-awan, Carcar, Found and Believed to be Marijoy Jimenea Chiong

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CORRECTION/UPDATE: As of September 27, 2025, I decided to put new information concerning body decay. I realized that decomposition may not alter skeletal height. I decided to update this post because I made some factual errors.

I would like to share my opinion that the body found in Carcar, Cebu, was indeed the body of Marijoy Jimenea Chiong. As I watched Give Up Tomorrow, I was infuriated to realize that the late Judge Martin Ocampo didn't even bother to have the body analyzed. Even worse, the Supreme Court of the Philippines under the leadership of Atty. Hilario G. Davide Jr., (a relative by affinity of the victims) said no to the request for a DNA test. Even worse, the alleged remains of Marijoy were later cremated, leaving no more room to verify them. Where are the tissue samples? It's no wonder that it's become effortless for rumors to spread that the Chiong sisters are supposedly alive (but the photos found belong to the sisters-in-laws and their youngest, Debbie Jane Chiong-Sia) and that there are many people named Jacqueline Chiong. That's why I spell out Jimenea to avoid confusion. 

Before people say that the body isn't Marijoy, I'd like to share why I think the body is Marijoy 

Okay, I might be wrong since I'm no forensics expert nor do I have a license for one. I'd need the help of people like Dr. Racquel Del Rosario-Fortun to help me understand things better. The Very Well Health website gives this explanation of what may have caused the corpse of the lady to be only 5 feet tall when Marijoy was 5'4 feet tall:

After reaching a state of maximum rigor mortis, the muscles will begin to loosen due to continued chemical changes within the cells and internal tissue decay. The process, known as secondary flaccidity, occurs over a period of one to three days and is affected by external conditions such as temperature.5 Cold slows down the process.

During secondary flaccidity, the skin will begin to shrink, creating the illusion that hair and nails are growing. Rigor mortis will then dissipate in the opposite direction—from the fingers and toes to the face—over a period of up to 48 hours.

Once secondary flaccidity is complete, all of the muscles of the body will again be relaxed.

I'd like to share this data from Aftermath which  may defend my speculation that the body was indeed Marijoy:

Stage One: Autolysis

The first stage of human decomposition is called autolysis, or self-digestion, and begins immediately after death. As soon as blood circulation and respiration stop, the body has no way of getting oxygen or removing wastes. Excess carbon dioxide causes an acidic environment, causing membranes in cells to rupture. The membranes release enzymes that begin eating the cells from the inside out.

Rigor mortis causes muscle stiffening. Small blisters filled with nutrient-rich fluid begin appearing on internal organs and the skin’s surface. The body will appear to have a sheen due to ruptured blisters, and the skin’s top layer will begin to loosen.

Stage Two: Bloat 

Stage two of human decomposition consists of bloating to the body. Leaked enzymes from the first stage begin producing many gases. Due to the gases, the human body can double in size, giving it that bloated look.The sulfur-containing compounds that the bacteria release also cause skin discoloration. In addition, insect activity can be present.

The microorganisms and bacteria produce extremely unpleasant odors called putrefaction. These odors often alert others that a person has died, and can linger long after a body has been removed.

Stage Three: Active Decay

Fluids released through orifices indicate the beginning of active decay. Organs, muscles, and skin become liquefied. When all of the body’s soft tissue decomposes, hair, bones, cartilage, and other byproducts of decay remain. The cadaver loses the most mass during this stage.

Stage Four: Skeletonization

Because the skeleton has a decomposition rate based on the loss of organic (collagen) and inorganic components, there is no set timeframe when skeletonization occurs.

It should be important to know that until now, nobody has come forward to claim the body found in the ravine. The mother never saw the face of the body. However, with the decay going on, even if the body was indeed Marijoy's, the face was so badly beaten. The same orange clothes and jeans were worn. So who could it be? The Evidence Locker mentions that the mother and one of her sons, Dennis Jimenea Chiong, who's married to a woman named Mitch Beltran-Chiong (who unfortunately is gossiped to be that she's Marijoy, when she's clearly not), didn't even identify the body. It might be a result of stress and denial. I think Mrs. Chiong was able to identify the clothes of her daughter. However, grief and denial may have caused them not to be sure if the body was that of their family member. 

However, what I realized was also this basic truth, that I may have ignored while writing this post:

Forensic anthropologists will be closely studying the arrivals at AFTER. They work to identify differently preserved human remains that may, for example, be decayed, mutilated, burned or scavenged. By studying the skeleton and any physical markers it may display, the forensic anthropologist can provide information about the deceased individual’s ancestry, age, sex and height. In their examination of the bones the forensic anthropologist may also be able to determine if the deceased shows evidence of skeletal trauma which may have occurred when the person was alive or around the time of death. They may also identify if the deceased person suffered from a particular disease that affects the skeleton (such as joint disease) or had undergone medical procedures (such as operations or implants). These additional details may also help to identify a body. 

What's even crazier is how the film Jacqueline Comes Home (which premiered on July 18, 2018) has the Chiong family immediately recognize the body. So much for the quest for justice for the sisters and accuracy! The body wasn't even verified and the body tries to present it as Marijoy's. However, without DNA test results and the body having been cremated later, I believe it'll be hard to prove things!

The question of the body's identity

This deleted scene from Give Up Tomorrow interviews the plight of an illiterate woman. Fortunately, there are subtitles available for those who can't understand Cebuano. As I was watching this video, I can't help but feel sorry for this woman. I even wonder if her appearance had deteriorated as a result of stress. I've seen people whose appearances deteriorate when they've undergone too much stress. I don't blame the woman for her statements here. I'd be afraid, too, if I were in her place. This video reveals that she saw nothing. There was no voice whatsoever. In my case, I believe that the murder victim's body was placed in a hurriedly dug grave. 

Give Up Tomorrow presents the defense's side. Miguel Syjuco, who's married to Mimi Larrañaga-Syjuco, had defense lawyers who wanted to prove that the body wasn't Marijoy. Yes, those words were said. If the body wasn't Marijoy's, then who was it? Somebody out there is missing a daughter but until now, no one has come forward to claim the body, not even during the trial. If so, it's possible that the defense lawyers discovered it belonged to somebody else. However, Judge Ocampo soon said that the identity of the body was irrelevant. Really? These words from the Evidence Locker really need to be taken into consideration, and why the Supreme Court was in a serious blunder:

The Defence also challenged the claim that semen found on the underwear matched Paco Larrañaga’s DNA. They questioned the forensic expert, who admitted that he did not even wear gloves during testing. The question was: were they able to prove that a rape had been committed at all? A sample was taken from a stain on the victim’s underwear and studied under a microscope. Only one sperm cell was detected. Which brings the question, if only one sperm cell was found, how could they claim that gang rape occurred?

The entire post mortem examination was a shambles. None of the evidence was stored correctly: everything was stuffed into one plastic bag. The autopsy was performed after the body was embalmed, which would have destroyed vital evidence. Also, the body was cremated before fingerprint testing was complete, and no tissue samples were preserved.

Because of all the questions surrounding forensic evidence of the body and clothing, the Defence requested to have it all re-tested. The presiding judge, Martin Ocampo, ruled proof regarding the identity of the body was irrelevant. This was a massive set-back for the Defence. Forensic testing would benefit everyone involved: if the defendants were not guilty, it would prove it. But if they were, in fact, guilty, evidence would be able to prove it too. And if the body was not Marijoy – were they dealing with a murder at all?

Stating that this was no way to run a fair trial, the Defense lawyers announced their withdrawal from the case. Judge Ocampo was furious and said they were challenging his integrity. In a fit of rage, he sent the six Defence attorneys to jail for contempt of court. The judge re-assigned lawyers from the Public Offender’s office to take charge of the Defence that very same day, and the trial continued.

It should be interesting that this can be found in the Supreme Court decision, which should make one wonder if we can truly trust the Philippine justice system:

THE IDENTITY OF THE DEAD BODY OF THE WOMAN FOUND IN TAN-AWAN, CARCAR, CEBU LAST JULY 18, 1997 WAS NEVER CONCLUSIVELY ESTABLISHED THUS THE NEED FOR ITS EXHUMATION FOR DNA TESTING;"

In his supplemental motion for reconsideration dated March 25, 2004, Larrañaga submitted a separate study of Dr. Racquel Del Rosario-Fortun, Forensic Pathologist, to show that the examination conducted by the prosecution expert witnesses on the body found in Tan-awan, Carcar is inadequate.

However, even if the body indeed belonged to Marijoy, other records proved Paco wasn't in Cebu City at that time. The judge demanded evidence but never examined it. Sure, it takes only one hour to fly from Manila to Cebu but why were flight records even ignored? It wouldn't hurt the family to have the body exhumed and given a DNA test. Allegedly, Mrs. Chiong refused to do so, presumably because she believed was truly her daughter's body, and was said to have mentioned that the spirit would be disturbed. Even more, nepotism may have played in the case. Cheryl Jimenea worked for former Philippine president Joseph Estrada. Atty. Davide was married to Virginia Jimenea Perez-Davide, a relative of Mrs. Chiong.

This brings me back to that undeniable scene from Jacqueline Comes Home. The movie had a scene where students debated whether or not Sonny (a placeholder for Paco Larrañaga) was innocent or not. Another person naively said that we should just trust the Philippine justice system because it will never convict an innocent person. How laughable and creepy is that statement! If one knew of the history of the late George Stinney Jr.--he was wrongfully executed for a rape-slay case of two women. Until now, nobody knows who really did the crime. George Jr. was only acquitted when he already died. I believe law schools in the Philippines need to show the case of George Jr. and Give Up Tomorrow. Paco and his co-accused could've ended up like George Jr. Fortunately, former Philippine president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo abolished the death penalty in 2004. Death penalty can be good but only if there's a good justice system to guide it first!

Right now, it may be better to assume that the Chiong Sisters are victims of a body never found murder case (read here). If the body wasn't Marijoy's then the possibility is that both bodies were destroyed by the real perpetrators. Just remember that before Jacqueline and Marijoy disappeared--their father the late Dionisio Chiong got fired from work. Mr. Chiong was just another worker who suddenly lost his job. It's said that Mr. Chiong's boss turned out to be a drug kingpin. I won't spell out the name like Give Up Tomorrow never did. If that was the case then we'll never know what happened to them. They may been kidnapped and murdered, their bodies destroyed, and the body found in Tan-awan, Carcar, may have been a distraction.