CEBU – Families of policemen killed by friendly fire during a security patrol in Samar province in central Philippines were crying for justice as both the Philippine National Police and Armed Forces of the Philippines investigate the deadly incident.
Army soldiers killed the policemen and wounded 9 more after they mistook the unit as members of the communist rebel group New People’s Army in Rosal village in Santa Rita town. The soldiers, all from Charlie Company of the 87th Infantry Battalion, attacked the group of policemen who were tracking down the rebels.
The policemen had no chance on the battle-hardened soldiers, although they managed to hold on fighting the infantrymen for about 20 minutes until reinforcements arrived. At the end of the fighting, six policemen laid dead – many of them with gunshot wounds in the head, believed to have been taken down by army snipers.
The soldiers were also in the same area and hunting down NPA insurgents. There was no report military casualties and the Armed Forces of the Philippines called the incident as “misencounter.” Police said Lieutenant Orlando M. Casipit Jr. was the commander of the army squad, comprising of 16 soldiers, who attacked the policemen.
Casipit and his men were all relieved from duty while the investigation is going on. The slain policemen – members of the 805th Mobile Company of the Regional Mobile Force Battalion – have been identified as Phil Rey Mendigo, Edwin Ebrado, Wyndell Noromor, Rowel Reyes, Julie Escalo and Julius Suarez – all with the rank of Police Officer 1.
And the wounded as Romulo Cordero, Elmer Pan, Chris Angelo Pialago, Jaime Galoy, Rey Barbosa, Jonel Gonzaga, Rommel Bagunas, Janmark Adones, and Roden Goden, also Police Officers 1. It was not immediately known whether the policemen, who were all clad in camouflage uniform, were fresh recruits and on a test mission. (Cebu Examiner) of inefficiency in the office,” Buenafe said. (Luel Galarpe)
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