A Filipino national was executed in Saudi Arabia for the murder of a Saudi citizen on October 5, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
DFA Undersecretary for Migration Eduardo Jose de Vega confirmed the execution but noted that no official notification had been received from Saudi authorities.
He stated that the Philippine government made extensive efforts to intervene, including appeals and attempts to negotiate blood money with the victim’s family, which were unsuccessful.
The Chargé d’affaires at the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh, Rommel Romato, indicated that the execution occurred without prior notification to either the embassy or the family of the executed individual.
The sentence was carried out under qisas, or retributive justice, due to a financial dispute leading to the murder.
Despite President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s appeal to Saudi King Salman, the victim’s family declined discussions on compensation.
The Philippine Embassy is currently addressing nine other death penalty cases in Saudi Arabia.
