MANILA (UPDATED) — The Philippines on Monday said it was investigating the death of a Filipino worker in Saudi Arabia.
The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) in a statement confirmed the death of Marjorette Garcia, a domestic worker deployed to Saudi in 2021.
The 32-year-old Filipina was found with stab wounds, media reports earlier said.
The DMW said its office in Al-Khobar and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration were coordinating with the Philippine Embassy and Saudi police to determine the "circumstances behind" the death of Garcia.
The DMW is also working for the immediate return of Garcia's remains to the Philippines.
"We assure them of our continuing support during their time of grief and in the ongoing investigation," it said.
JUSTICE
In an interview with ANC on Monday, DMW officer-in-charge Hans Leo Cacdac said that "justice will be delivered" for Garcia and her family.
"Rest assured if the Saudi authorities find that there had been wrongdoing or crime committed against Marjorette, then we will seek justice [to] the full extent of the law under Saudi law," he said.
Cacdac could not confirm whether or not Garcia had been stabbed to death as they await the results of the investigation by Saudi authorities.
But he said Garcia had been working "at least very well and smoothly" with her current employer.
Earlier this year, Jullebee Ranara, a Filipino worker in Kuwait, was found dead in a desert in the Gulf State.
An autopsy report showed she was pregnant at the time of her death.
The culprit, the teen son of Ranara's employer, was sentenced last month to 15 years in prison for murder, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.