MANILA, Philippines – The New People’s Army (NPA) abducted two policemen and an Army soldier at the mining site in Monkayo, Compostela Valley yesterday morning.
The rebels’ blocking force also ambushed a military reinforcement, almost killing an Army colonel who was hit by sniper fire in the neck.
The kidnapping came after NPA guerrillas attacked a nursery of the Philippine Coconut Authority in Dinalungan, Aurora, burning cottages and destroying some 14,000 seedlings of dwarf coconut the other day.
Maj. Gen. Reynaldo Mapa-gu, commander of the Army’s 10th Infantry Division based in Davao, said the identities of the two abducted policemen were still being established.
Mapagu identified the seized soldier as a certain S/Sgt. Maglangit of the 36th Infantry Battalion.
Mapagu said the rebels had set up a checkpoint along the national highway in Barangay Pasian, Monkayo town where they seized the soldier and the two policemen who were on board a motorcycle and passenger bus, respectively. – With Ding Cervantes