Life sentence for Filipino man who dismembered girlfriend upheld

Taipei, Aug. 14 (CNA) The Taiwan High Court on Thursday upheld the life sentence of a Filipino migrant worker convicted of murdering his compatriot girlfriend and cutting her into pieces in Taoyuan, northern Taiwan, two years ago.

The verdict against Mark Dave Velasco, who is in his 30s, can still be appealed, the court said.

The 30-year-old man had been in a relationship with his girlfriend, a fellow Filipino migrant worker named Red Michelle Selda, for two years.

On the afternoon of July 17, 2023, the man pinned his girlfriend down on the bed in their shared apartment in Taoyuan's Zhongli District, following an argument.

He then strangled her until she became immobile, and stabbed her multiple times in the abdomen, chest and neck with a screwdriver, leading to massive bleeding.

In an attempt to destroy evidence, he used a meat cleaver to cut her internal organs and flesh into small pieces, which he flushed down the toilet.

He later washed the remains with bleach and placed some bones and bloodstained clothing into bags, which he discarded in a company dormitory trash bin in Bade District, before returning to their apartment to clean the scene and steal her wallet and phone.

The case came to light when Red Michelle Selda's employer and intermediary visited her apartment after she failed to report to work and discovered her dismembered body.

Velasco was arrested and indicted for murder in September 2024.

In his first trial held in November 2024, the Taoyuan District Court said that despite admitting to the crime, he has neither reached a settlement with his girlfriend's family nor shown remorse to this day.

Due to the cruelty of his actions, the man was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder, destruction of a corpse and theft.

He later appealed the case, but the High Court ruled on Thursday that it upheld the lower court's decision, finding no errors in its judgment.