BIFF medical officer, cousin killed

Police and military forces killed a medical officer and a member of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighter (BIFF) in a raid on their lair in Shariff Aguak town of Maguindanao on Sunday night.

Senior Supt. Agustin Tello, director of the Maguindanao police, said the BIFF medical officer was also included in the list of those the Department of National Defense (DND) wanted arrested following the declaration of martial law in Mindanao.

He identified the BIFF medical officer as 46-year-old Raul Angkay who is included in the Arrest Order No. 2 issued by the DND in relation to the crime of rebellion related to the Marawi City siege.

“He has no reported role (in Marawi siege) but the BIFF is allied with the Maute Group,” said Tello.

The second fatality in the operation conducted in Barangay LabuLabu was Angkay’s cousin identified as Edz Angkay Dalending, 45.

Tello said joint police and military operatives seized a .45 pistol, a fragmentation grenade and six cellular phones.

Security forces have been capitalizing on the martial law declaration in the entire Mindanao to run after the Maute Group and its allies.

Director General Ronald dela Rosa, chief of the Philippine National Police, said the martial law declaration is very helpful in accounting not only for the Maute Group leaders and members but also the group’s financiers.

“It’s now easy to issue arrest warrants to those whom we know are members of the Maute compared to before. So martial law is really a big help,” said Dela Rosa.

He then cited as an example the three alleged members of the Maute Group who were collared in a followup operation in Iloilo. (With a report from Francis Wakefield