MANILA, Philippines — Five suspected hijackers were killed in an alleged shootout with operatives of the Highway Patrol Group (HPG) in Tuba, Benguet yesterday.
HPG director Brig. Gen. Alexander Tagum said the suspects, who have yet to be identified, died at the scene.
Tagum said they conducted pursuit operations after receiving reports that an Isuzu wing van was hijacked in La Trinidad.
He said the suspects were spotted in the stolen truck and a sport utility vehicle in Barangay Taloy Sur Proper at around 3:30 a.m., but instead of surrendering, the suspects opened fire.
Two of the suspects were said to be wearing police uniforms.
There was no reported casualty among the policemen.
Meanwhile, a drug suspect was killed in a sting in Nueva Ecija on Tuesday night.
Col. Jaime Santos, provincial police director, said Crisanto Hizon shot it out with police officers who posed as buyers of shabu in Barangay Plateros in General Natividad town at around 11:15 p.m.
A 9mm pistol, 19 sachets of shabu and marked money were reportedly recovered from the fatality.
In Rizal, Efren Alba was shot dead in an alleged shootout with anti-narcotics agents in Barangay De la Paz in Antipolo City. – Ramon Efren Lazaro, Ed Amoroso, Emmanuel Tupas