In another part of the world

I was shocked to see an account of Roger Strunk's death on Philippine news sites as the top news and also under Entertainment News on Friday.

Here in Tracy, many of those of us who knew Strunk were saddened by his unexpected death. We didn't realize that in the country where he'd lived with his late wife, the beloved actress Nida Blanca, he's still considered a prime suspect in her 2001 murder.

GMA News asked if they could use our stories and photos in coverage to be used on their television stations. I was happy to oblige, but I had to ask: Why was this big news in the Philippines?

"Mr. Rod Strunk is still big news here in the Philippines because the hearing for the Nida Blanca case is still ongoing," Hannah Petrache politely replied.

While several sites used parts of our stories, some did their own reporting, even quoting Matt Robinson, the city of Tracy's spokesman.

A woman who has a blog called "Midlife Mysteries" posted "Rod Strunk is Dead," and wrote, "Finally, the wheels of justice have turned. Or has it?" The woman, Cathy, said her mother was Nida Blanca's oldest friend in the Philippines, and she had written the front-page story in the Philippine Daily Inquirer after Blanca was killed.

Asian Journal also had this, which I found interesting:

“Everything will go with him to the grave,” Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez said, reacting to news of Strunk’s death.

"I only heard it from the news. We have not received any official communication from the US government," Gonzalez said, adding that the government had a filed a second extradition case against Strunk. "Now that he's dead, his extradition [and] murder case are already moot and academic."

RIP, Roger.