A POLICEMAN was killed and another was wounded when a group of armed men, believed to be communist rebels, attacked them while patrolling an area in Malaybalay City, Bukidnon Monday evening.
Supt. Surki Sereñas, Police Regional Office 10 (Northern Mindanao) spokesperson, described the attack in Barangay Sumpong that killed Police Officer 3 Jerry Tropel as “treacherous.”
Tropel’s companion, P01 Rene Caña, sustained injuries and is recuperating at a hospital.
“Caña narrowly escaped death but was also wounded after shooting it out with four gunmen armed with M1 rifles and caliber .45 pistols,” Sereñas said, adding that they believe the New People’s Army (NPA) was responsible for the attack.
Sereñas said the police officers were on a night patrol in the area in response to frequent street crimes in the village.
Chief Supt. Timoteo Pacleb, PRO-10 director, called the attack “cold-blooded murder.”
“Our investigation is gaining headway and we are exerting all our efforts to bring the culprits to the bar of the law. Justice will be served to the bereaved family,” Pacleb said.
On the NPA’s involvement in the attack, he pointed out that the police officers were not engaged “in the armed conflict between the NPA and government forces.”
The police outpost in the village, he said, “is there primarily for crime prevention and emergency response.”
Pacleb called on the NPA leadership to explain “what is the direct participation of murdered police officer in the armed conflict that justify engaging them in an armed confrontation.”
“The attack is a clear disrespect for the International Humanitarian Law (IHL) because the slain and wounded police officers were doing community engagement and not in any way engaged in armed conflict,” the police official said.
“The intent of the attack is clear,” he added. “It was meant to create panic and intimidate the public. Clearly the people of Malabalay, Bukidnon do not want this terroristic act in their city.”
A local radio report Tuesday morning indicated that the NPA has admitted the attack.
The NPA, the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines, is considered as a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union. (Jigger Jerusalem)
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