Combined Army and police operatives captured a top-ranking leader of the New People's Army (NPA) operating in Albay province on Tuesday afternoon in his hideout in Barangay (village) Buang,
Arrested was Bienvenido Paladin alias Ka Buddy Silva/Ronald/Ted, a native of Guinobatan, Albay, according to Army Col. Raul Farnacio, commanding officer of the Army 901st Infantry Brigade based in Daraga, Albay.
Farnacio said Paladin is a member of the NPA executive committee of the communist Front Committee Larangan 77 operating in Albay.
In a phone interview, the Army official said Paladin did not resist arrest when the government men swooped down at his safehouse in
The arresting authorities were armed with a warrant of arrest issued by three local courts where the suspect is facing five counts of murder and several other heinous crimes.
Farnacio said before the suspect’s arrest, two rebel returnees have tipped off the command about the sightings of Paladin in the said village.
Following the information, the Army and the police initiated a surveillance operation on the suspect for over a month, Farnacio said.
The rebel leader was turned over on Wednesday to the Ligao City Police Office and was later booked at the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology city jail.
Farnacio said the arrest of Paladin is a big blow to the dissident movement operating in the province.
The arrest of Paladin could have been the second achievement of government authorities in the month of July in terms of rebel manpower haul.
Earlier, Chief Supt. Clarence Guinto, Bicol Regional Police Office director, presented Merjel O. Nebria alias Ka Joy, reportedly vice commanding officer of the NPA Larangan No. 2 operating in Donsol, Sorsogon, who allegedly surrendered to Senior Insp. Jim Vargas Jeremias, Donsol police chief.
Media practitioners in Albay, however, expressed disgust over the way the top police official in Bicol handled the press conference on the surrender of Nebria.
When the media men started asking clarificatory questions from Nebria, Guinto started to become defensive of him – indirectly insulting the group.
The media persons have expressed desire to have an investigation into the alleged surrender of Nebria as they said they doubt the information they got from him and Guinto.
The following day, the Celso Minguez Command of the NPA operating in Sorsogon came out with a statement denying that Nebria was their member.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=547983
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