By Ed Amoroso

CAMP VICENTE LIM, Laguna – Police have filed criminal charges against ranking officials of the New People’s Army (NPA) and a former Army soldier tagged as among the communist guerillas who raided the Quezon provincial jail in Lucena City last Oct. 25 and freed seven of their comrades being held for murder.

Senior Superintendent Christopher Laxa, Calabarzon director of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), said charges of delivering prisoners from jail, robbery in band, malicious mischief, and car theft were filed against Tirso Alcantara, alias Ka Bart; Alisandra Guzman, alias Ka Migs; Marife Carabido; and Alfredo Ranes, alias Ka Benzar.

Also charged were former Army Sgt. Norberto Calag, Allan Ballesteros, Obet Ballesteros, Gemma Carag, Cecilia Mondia, Noel Santos, Gerson Carabido, Rogelio Monteverda, Arnold Valencia, Fernando Tawagon and a certain Ka Mar, Ka Bel, Ka Bubot, and several John and Jane Does.

Laxa said charges of kidnapping with slight detention and direct assault upon a person in authority were also filed against them before the Quezon prosecutor’s office.

The CIDG also released yesterday artist’s sketches of two of the 20 rebels, one of them a woman, who stormed the provincial jail in Barangay 10, Lucena City, as described by jail guards, inmates and other witnesses.

Witnesses described the female guerrilla as aged 25 to 27 with an athletic build, 5’3” in height, morena complexion and Bicol accent, Laxa said.

Superintendent Romano Cardino, CIDG deputy regional director, said they have traced the owners of the four getaway cars used by the rebels during the daring attack on the Quezon provincial jail.

He said the owners claimed hours after being released that they were hired by a woman and tightly guarded somewhere in Quezon.

The rebels abandoned the vehicles in Sariaya, Lucena, and Pagbilao, Cardino said.

Cardino told The STAR that operatives of the CIDG-Quezon, the Regional Mobile Group, and the Philippine Army were dispatched to track down the rebels in their suspected hideouts in Quezon.

The Calabarzon police has created a fact-finding committee headed by Chief Superintendent Rodolfo Magtibay, deputy regional director for administration, that would recommend possible administrative sanctions against police and jail officials for the security lapses.

However, the committee has not yet released the results of their investigation.

Communist guerillas, disguised as government anti-narcotics agents, infiltrated the Quezon provincial jail and freed seven of their comrades, identified as Carag, secretary of the Kilusang Larangan Gerilya; Mondia, Santos, Valencia, Monteverda, Carabido, and Tawagon.