Cathy Cabral’s Final Stop Before Death Was a DPWH Project Under Investigation

(SPOT.ph) The last place Maria Catalina "Cathy" Cabral was seen before her death was a Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) project that's been under investigation, according to Baguio Mayor Benjamin Magalong.

Magalong said the location has been the subject of a completed inquiry, which focused on allegedly overpriced rock-netting works along Kennon Road. According to the Mayor, he had been frequently inspecting the area since 2020 after suspecting that rehabilitation work there had been poorly done, particularly the installation of rockfall netting meant to prevent loosened rocks from collapsing onto the roadway. The findings were serious enough that cases may be filed against the engineers who supervised the project in Baguio and Benguet, as well as the contractor involved. This project was approved by Cabral herself, DILG Secretary Jonvic Remulla told ANC.

It was at this exact location that authorities began piecing together what happened to the former DPWH undersecretary. The Philippine National Police (PNP) said the scene offered no signs of struggle. An autopsy found that Cabral died from blunt force trauma, with injuries consistent with a fall from a height. There were also no gunshot wounds, stab wounds, ligature marks, or signs of a fight. Based on these findings, officials from the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) said it was a possible suicide, but they stressed the case is still under investigation.

"All signs point to suicide," Remulla said to ANC, adding that Cabral was highly familiar with the spot. “She goes to Baguio often."

Cabral was traveling with her driver, Ricardo Hernandez, when she asked him to stop along Kennon Road on December 18. Per Remulla, dashcam footage showed Cabral sitting on a ledge in the area at around 10 a.m., before police instructed that her vehicle be moved. She went to the hotel at around 11 a.m., then asked Hernandez to take her back to the same spot along Kennon Road at around 2 p.m. Hernandez said Cabral told him she wanted to be left alone so she could clear her mind by the mountainside.

Later that day, she was found unconscious near the Bued River, at the bottom of a steep ravine below the highway. She was pronounced dead shortly after midnight on December 19.

Also read: ICI Calls Out "Widespread Destruction of Documents” in DPWH Flood Control Projects

Following her death, Batangas Representative Leandro Leviste claimed Cabral handed him a complete list of files containing a nationwide, project-by-project list of DPWH budget insertions on September 4. According to Leviste, the files detailed project locations, amounts, and the alleged proponents behind them.

“Many have asked for the late Usec. Cabral’s files to be released to the public,” Leviste was quoted as saying. “I will await the DPWH’s position on this, and I will do so if Secretary Vince [Dizon] tells me to.”

Cabral was a career civil engineer who spent more than 40 years at the DPWH, starting as a rank-and-file employee and eventually rising to Undersecretary for Planning and Public-Private Partnership in 2022. The role gave her visibility over which infrastructure projects are reviewed and readied before entering the national budget.

By mid-2025, her name started coming up in hearings as lawmakers questioned how certain projects made it into the public works budget. Cabral resigned from DPWH in September as scrutiny on budget insertions intensified.

Also read: DPWH: No Records Tied to Flood Control Investigation Lost in Building Fire