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RUMOR CONTROL: There is no ‘murderer’ on the loose
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Posted on Oct 15 2020
The CNMI Department of Public Safety has recently been made aware of a social media post regarding an alleged “murderer on the loose” in the village of Chalan Kanoa on Saipan. This post is false and misleading, DPS said in a statement yesterday.
In the interest of transparency, DPS has provided the following details of the case: On Sept. 16, 2020, at about 10:34pm, DPS received a call regarding an unresponsive individual in Chalan Kanoa. Police officers who were immediately dispatched to the scene met with the victim’s son, who stated that they noticed their father lying outside their door and thought the victim had been drinking and was just drunk. After realizing that the victim had no pulse, he called for emergency assistance. Police and emergency medical personnel responded to the scene. As with all unresponsive cases, this case was handed to the Criminal Investigative Bureau for further investigation.
A few days later, Sept.22, 2020, DPS requested for a toxicology report through the Office of the Attorney General. After consulting with the chief prosecutor, an autopsy was suggested to rule out any foul play. The autopsy was conducted on Sept. 24, 2020, by Dr. Phillip Dauterman at the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. morgue. On Sept. 26, 2020, DPS officers in charge of the case met with Dauterman, who told them of his findings.
Dauterman concluded that the individual had died of natural causes due to heart failure. Although the individual did have a bruise on his forehead, the autopsy concluded that it was not enough to be a cause of death. Police have already met and have briefed the family members in this case.
DPS reminds the public to be vigilant when obtaining information through an online source. “During this pandemic, oftentimes the spread of misinformation is just as dangerous as the coronavirus itself. The CNMI is reminded to only share official and verified notices, press releases, and advisories from the official government sources such as DPS and the Office of the Governor,” the statement added. (PR)
