BY DOMINIQUE GABRIEL G. BAÑAGA
BACOLOD City – Troops of the Philippine Army’s 62nd Infantry Battalion (62IB) and a group of armed men clashed in Barangay Amin, Isabela, Negros Occidental yesterday morning, killing an alleged leader of the New People’s Army (NPA) and a suspected hit man.
Government soldiers also captured one suspected rebel.
One casualty was Virgilio Marco Tamban alias “Bedam”, said to be the commanding officer of the NPA’s SYP platoon Lenovo.
The other fatality was yet to be identified as of this writing although he was believed to be working for the NPA as a hit man.
Army Lieutenant Colonel William Pesase Jr., acting commander of the 62IB, said Tamban was the primary suspect in the murders of Jay Maykel just this March 2 in the town of Moises Padilla; Crish John Guyha on Feb. 28 in Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental; Lucio and Tony Perater on Feb. 16 in Vallehermoso, Negros Oriental; and former Citizens Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU) member Heide Boca on Feb. 19 in Barangay Santol, Binalbagan town.
According to Pesase, they managed to foil a planned attack by the NPA.
The gun battle lasted for at least three minutes, until the 10-man NPA insurgent group were forced to retreat, leaving behind the two fatalities and one of their members who was subsequently captured.
Authorities recovered two .45 pistols and one grenade from the captured NPA insurgent./PN
