16 nabbed for ambush on farmers in North Cotabato town

NORTH COTABATO, Philippines — The suspects in the fatal ambush of three members of the Moro National Liberation Front on Saturday in Barangay Kibudoc in Matalam town, North Cotabato have been arrested.

Town officials confirmed on Sunday that the suspects were immediately arrested by local police based on tips from witnesses.

The 16 suspects belong to a group led by a certain Jojo Bojante, whose family is locked in a dispute with relatives of ambush fatalities George Dilangalen, During Panga and Mohammad Angeles.

The three belonged to a faction of the Moro National Liberation Front under the group’s founding founding chairman, Nur Misuari. They were riding motorcycles on the way to their farms on Saturday when gunmen shot them from one side of the road in Barangay Kibudoc.

In a statement Sunday, the North Cotabato provincial police office said the suspects are now detained at the Matalam municipal police station and will be charged for multiple murder.