By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

The two primary suspects in the suspected murder of overseas Filipino worker (OFW) Joanna Daniela Demafelis were recently arrested by the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol).

In a statement released by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) last Friday, Lebanese-national Nader Essam Assaf and his Syrian wife, Mona Hassoun, were arrested in Damascus, Syria.

Assaf was later turned over to Lebanese authorities, while Hassoun remains under the custody of Syrian authorities.

DFA Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said they and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) will follow instructions from President Rodrigo Duterte and request the suspects be turned over to Kuwaiti authorities to face charges.

The two fled Kuwait in 2017 after allegedly murdering Demafelis and putting her remains in a freezer.

In a report by CNN Philippines, Philippine Ambassador to Kuwait Renato Villa said Assaf’s mother claimed it was Hassoun who was hurting Demafelis.

He said the suspects could face the death penalty in Kuwait if proven guilty.

Demafelis is one of several OFWs who had reportedly been mistreated by employers in Kuwait. The Philippine government has since banned the deployment of workers to the Middle East country, with workers being repatriated back beginning earlier this month./DGB, WDJ