Exclusive tour: ‘Haunted’ Laperal White House, now a restaurant dressed for Christmas

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines —  For almost a hundred years, the Laperal White House in 14 Leonard Wood Road, Brgy. Teacher's Camp has puzzled people — both for its beauty and its mystery. 

Built in the 1930s by jewelry chain magnate Roberto Laperal, the Laperal White House was his and his wife Victorina’s vacation home, designed in Victorian style of solid yakal and narra wood. It was considered as among the best examples of American colonial architecture in the country.

A former security guard for the house claimed in a History Channel documentary that the Laperals were beheaded by Japanese invaders in the mansion so that the Japanese could take over the house, and it was their ghosts that were haunting the house. 

Other reports, however, claimed that the Laperals were not at home when the Japanese confiscated the house and turned it into a garrison during World War II. A Supreme Court document showed that Roberto Laperal was tried for allegedly selling a property and conniving with the Japanese, but he was found to be innocent.

The Japanese, other former caretakers claimed in a GMA documentary, reportedly tortured suspected spies, beheaded priests and raped nuns, among other women, in the house; and the ghosts of which were allegedly the ones that haunt the house.

According to the caretakers interviewed for the GMA documentary, the specter of Roberto Laperal Jr., who inherited the house from his parents, as well as that of his wife, Purificacion Manotok Laperal, were the ones giving visitors and caretakers a fright. The couple reportedly both died in the house at separate times.

Apart from supposed apparitions of former owners, a 1996 “Magandang Gabi… Bayan” episode claimed a white lady, children and tall, black figures spooked those cleaning, visiting or watching over the house.

Through the years, the house has withstood many disasters, including the 1990 Luzon earthquake. 

In 2007, Chinese-Filipino billionaire Lucio Tan bought the property, and still owns it today, Lovely Tumbaga told Philstar.com during the news site’s recent visit in the mansion.

Tumabaga manages Joseph’s, the restaurant that now leases the property from Tan. Joseph’s is owned by its eponymous