Christine Dacera: Rommel Galida charged with rape and murder of flight attendant, claims he just covered her with blanket
Of the 11 men accused of rape and murder of Christine Angelica Dacera, 23, one is Rommel Galida, the victim's colleague. Dacera was a flight attendant who was found unconscious in an empty bathtub of a hotel room in Philippines.
Dacera and her friends were celebrating New Year's Eve at the hotel. The Philippine Airlines attendant was declared dead after being taken to hospital with "lacerations and sperm in her genitalia". There were scratches all over her arms and legs and bruises all over her body. Of the 11 charged, "only three were Dacera’s friends. The others were practically strangers to her... they were only known to her three friends," Heavy.com noted. Philippine National Police Chief Director Debold Sinas said that apart from Galida (29), John Pascual Dela Serna III (27) and John Paul Reyes Halili (25) have also been taken into police custody.
According to Heavy, Galida said that he woke up around 10 am and found Dacera asleep in the bathtub. Galida said he put a blanket over her and returned to bed but when he woke up a few hours later, she was unconscious and turning blue. He then reportedly called for help and coworkers tried to revive Dacera. However, she was declared dead after being rushed to the hospital.
Who is Rommel Galida?
Galida was born on November 18, 1991, in Pandan, Antique, Philippines, and moved to Iloilo City, Philippines. He attended San Jose Catholic School and the University of San Agustin, which are both in Iloilo City. In 2008, he enrolled at Iloilo Doctors’ College in Molo, Iloilo City, according to Conan Daily. He was also an occasional actor. In 2012, he competed in the “Mr. Pogi” segment of the GMA 7 show 'Eat Bulaga.' He was a grand finalist and he won the Best Mr. Pogi Profile Picture award. He played the cousin of Xian Lim’s character in the 2013 film 'Bakit Hindi Ka Crush ng Crush Mo?,' which also starred Kim Chiu, Ramon Bautista and Pokwang.In 2014, he competed in the 'Gandang Lalake' segment of the ABS-CBN show 'It’s Showtime' and became a grand finalist.
He is a cabin attendant at the Philippine Airlines subsidiary PAL Express, which means he was Dacera's colleague and she knew him before the party. On December 17, 2020, he took to Instagram to share photos of himself and his fellow PAL Express employee Christine Dacera while they were at work.
On December 31, 2020, he celebrated New Year’s Eve with Dacera and 10 other men including Serna III and Halili. They checked in at City Garden Hotel in Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines. She was declared dead on January 1, 2021.
Dacera’s mother, Sharon, speaking to a local news channel, said she allowed her daughter to attend the New Year’s Eve celebration with friends and colleagues because she trusted them. The victim even called her family past midnight on January 1. Twelve hours later, the family was informed by Dacera's friend, who was also in the hotel with her, that she had died.