Army nabs 6 suspected NPA extortionist(s)

From the Daily Tribune (Nov 27): Army nabs 6 suspected NPA extortionist

Six members of a criminal group operating in Agusan del Norte province and suspected to have links with the communist New People’s Army (NPA) were captured by military operatives over the weekend. Lt. Col. Eugenio Julio Osias IV, the spokesman of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division (ID), identified those captured as Kevin Badajos, Dennis Badajos, Rolly Samora, William Samora, Jerry Pitao and Remark Alburo, all residents of Poblacion 1, Santiago, Agusan del Norte. Osias said the six were collared by combined elements of the 7th Special Forces Company and the Santiago Municipal Police Station in in Puro 5, Barangay San Isidro in Santiago town at around 9:45 a.m. Saturday. The group yielded two homemade shotguns with six live ammunition, a .357-caliber revolver, one .38 caliber gun, a .45 caliber pistol and an MK2 hand grenade. “With these firearms in the possession of the said group it is believed that the they are members of a criminal group operating in the eastern part of Agusan del Norte,” said Osias. “They were immediately taken to and detained at Santiago Municipal Police Station for proper disposition,” added Osias. Osias also said government authorities are now validating information that the armed group is linked to the NPA, citing reports that the suspects were being sent to extort cash from local businessmen in Agusan del Norte.  Maj. Gen. Nestor Anonuevo, the 4th ID chief, vowed continued close coordination between the command and the police to fight criminality in their areas of respnisbility. “The 4th Infantry Division is an active partner of the PNP in the fight against criminality. This incident significantly reduces the number loose firearms and the probability of criminal activity in the municipality of Santiago in specific and Agusan del Norte as a whole,” Anonuevo said.

http://www.tribune.net.ph/index.php/nation/item/7394-army-nabs-6-suspected-npa-extortionist