CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – The relatives of the overseas Filipino worker (OFW) who died in Kuwait last December have asked the Duterte administration to help them in uncovering the mystery surrounding her death.
Liezl Trus Hukdong, 33, reportedly committed suicide while working for a Kuwaiti employer in that country. Her relatives, however, were shocked to discover that several of her organs were removed when her remains arrived in the country on January 5.
Liezl’s niece Gracel Ann Hukdong said the family wants to know how she died, noting they only knew about her death when her employer got in touch with them and informed them that her aunt hanged herself.
In her Facebook page, Gracel posted photos of her aunt badly bruised and the middle part of the front of her body, from the bottom lip down to her navel, sewn up.
According to Gracel, her lungs, kidneys, brain, including her eyes and tongue, had been removed. Her skull appeared broken. The insides of her upper body were said to be stuffed with pieces of clothing.
“We doubted the cause of her death. They said she committed suicide, but why remove her organs?,” Gracel said in a phone interview over the weekend.
Liezl was buried in Liloan, Cebu, on Jan. 7. Gracel said it was decided by her family to put her to rest in Liloan, as most of her relatives are from there.
Gracel said they are now making efforts to contact the office of Pres. Rodrigo Duterte to help them find out real cause of Liezl’s death.
“We are calling on President Duterte to help us. We still could not believe that she died of suicide,” she said.
Liezl was from Barangay San Isidro, Valencia City in Bukidnon. She is survived by her two children, 11 and 9, who are living temporarily in Cebu. She separated from her husband a few years back.
To find greener pastures, Liezl sought employment in the Middle East and on Dec. 17, 2016 she flew to Kuwait and started her employment as a house help there.
Gracel noted that Liezl had a constant communication with her family on social media. They were confident that she would not feel homesick since a relative, Jerchell Jurial, was also working in Kuwait, was there to keep her company.
From her arrival in Kuwait up to October last year, Gracel said Liezl frequently got in touch with them. It was only in November when the video calls and chats stopped. At the time also, her Facebook account was deactivated.
On Dec. 19, or more than a year after working in Kuwait, Gracel said Liezl’s employer called up her relatives to tell them of her death. (Jigger J. Jerusalem/PNA)
