Reds raid Cagayan police outpost

TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan – New People’s Army (NPA) rebels raided a police outpost in Cagayan on Thursday.

At least 30 rebels wearing camouflage uniform stormed the outpost in Barangay Annafatan, Amulung at around noon and took two 9mm pistols, an M14 and four M16 rifles after disarming and beating the policemen on duty, including its head Senior Police Officer 4 Emmanuel Vergara. They also took a patrol vehicle, which they burned and abandoned in Barangay Pacac.

Chief Inspector Raymund Asistores, Amulung police chief, was relieved from his post yesterday due to the attack. He was replaced by Senior Inspector Reynente de Gracia.

The attack occurred less than a week after rebels stormed the police station in Madella, Quirino that left a policeman dead. The rebels also took the service vehicles at the station.

Senior Superintendent Merwin Cuarteros, Quirino police director, and Inspector Jhun-Jhun Balisi, chief of the Madella police station, were replaced following the attack.

NPA leader nabbed

Meanwhile, David Soriano, secretary of the Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA regional committee, was arrested at a police checkpoint in Barangay Camasi, Peñablanca at around 5:45 p.m. also on Thursday.

Jude Cipriano, Soriano’s companion and driver of their Starex van (WML-500), was also arrested.

Police recovered two 9mm pistols, a fragmentation grenade, a rifle grenade and subversive materials from the rebels.

Soriano is accused of killing Carlito Pentecostes Jr., the mayor of Gonzaga town, in 2015 and raiding a construction depot in Baggao that killed six policemen last year.