Krystel “K” Davantes was a successful and determined advertising executive, a Senior Account Manager at McCann World Group Philippines in Bonifacio Global City (BGC). Born in Saudi Arabia to OFW parents, K was raised in Las Piñas, graduating with honors and quickly ascending the corporate ladder. She was engaged to Benedict Ong, and the couple planned to marry in May 2014.

On the night of Friday, September 6, 2013, K left her BGC office around 10 p.m. After texting her aunt, Ella, that she was heading home, she decided to join eight colleagues for a night out, visiting the Scarlet Wine Lounge and Aracama Restaurant in BGC. Shortly after midnight, K texted her aunt again, saying she was finally heading home to Las Piñas, driving her metallic beige Toyota Altis.

By 1:30 a.m., K had not arrived. Her fiancé and family grew frantic, posting her disappearance on social media and checking hospitals and police stations. Hours later, their fears were confirmed: K’s body was found under the Tibagan Bridge in Barangay Sabutan, Silang, Cavite—an hour’s drive from BGC.

Her hands were bound with a seatbelt, a handkerchief covered her mouth, and she had sustained five stab wounds, three of which were to her neck. The autopsy confirmed she was not sexually assaulted; her cause of passing was asphyxia due to strangulation. Authorities initially suspected a case of “carnapping” (car theft), as her vehicle was missing.

The case quickly became a national sensation, leading President Noynoy Aquino to order the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) to work together. The City Government of Las Piñas contributed to a growing reward fund for information on the perpetrators.

The investigation gained momentum when K’s missing car was found abandoned on September 15 in Camella Homes, Las Piñas, near the SLEX exit—a possible exit point for the suspects. The car’s battery had been removed, and the interior smelled strongly of diesel, with burned parts on the dashboard, suggesting an attempt to destroy evidence by fire.

Investigators found odd items in the car: clothes, including female undergarments, and a handkerchief bearing the name “El Shad,” suggesting the items were purchased from a second-hand “ukay-ukay” shop to use as fuel for the arson. Crucially, the SOCO team recovered fingerprints and blood samples from the remaining seatbelts.

A major breakthrough occurred when an anonymous tipster named “Rex” contacted the authorities. Rex claimed his girlfriend’s friend, Anita, confessed that her live-in partner, Samuel “Desmo” Decimo, was involved in the crime. Desmo, a construction worker, had allegedly told Anita he and his gang committed a robbery and “finished off” the woman.

NBI agents tracked Desmo to Bacoor, Cavite, and arrested him on September 20. Desmo was brought to the DOJ for inquest proceedings, and though he had no lawyer present, he confessed to reporters, claiming he was desperate for money because his partner, Anita, had just given birth.

Desmo named five other accomplices, all members of a carnapping and robbery gang operating in Southern Manila. Three of the named suspects—Regie Diel (23), Jomar Pipito (33), and Kevin Jorick Evangelista (25)—were arrested in quick succession, all denying their involvement initially. The sixth suspect, Baser Minalang, remains at large.

The suspects detailed the night’s events: On September 6, they gathered in Las Piñas, armed with knives and fake firearms. They drove around Moonwalk Village, looking for a victim. They chose K Davantes as she exited her car and approached her gate around 1:31 a.m.

Evangelista held K at gunpoint while Desmo and Diel forcibly took her, pushing her into her own car. They drove her to Tagaytay, where she fought back. The suspects claimed they used the car’s laptop charger to strangle her until she was lifeless.

They admitted intending to sexually assault her but changed their minds, focusing only on robbery. However, fearing K could identify Desmo and report them, they decided to eliminate her. They drove to the Tibagan Bridge in Silang, where Desmo allegedly stabbed her repeatedly before dumping her body. They took PHP 3,000 cash and sold her gadgets for PHP 1,000.

After the NBI conducted a reenactment of the crime with Desmo, K’s family publicly voiced skepticism about the suspects’ version of events, noting inconsistencies, such as the initial claim of a kitchen knife being used when the autopsy suggested a double-edged weapon. They also questioned why K, who knew karate, didn’t fight back immediately.

The case was complicated by inter-agency rivalry and the massive reward money. The NBI proceeded with charges of qualified carnapping and robbery with homicide. Over six years, the suspects’ stories shifted; two even claimed innocence of the act itself, though admitting to the robbery.

Regie Diel accepted a plea deal, becoming a state witness and testifying against his former cohorts. Though he could not pinpoint the exact person who caused K’s demise, his testimony, along with DNA evidence linking Desmo’s blood to the vehicle, sealed the conviction.

In 2019, the Las Piñas Regional Trial Court found Samuel Desmo, Kevin Jorick Evangelista, Jomar Pipito, and others guilty of robbery with homicide. They were sentenced to reclusion perpetua (life imprisonment) with a minimum of 40 years.

The verdict brought closure to the Davantes family, who, in a statement, thanked the NBI and the former administration for ensuring “justice has been served.” The case remains a high-profile example of how quick, simple robbery can escalate to tragedy.