Two alleged couriers of the New People’s Army (NPA) were nabbed in a 5-minute car chase in Tboli town, South Cotabato Sunday, November 3, according to the military.
In a press release, 1Lt. Abel Porto, spokesman for the 27th Infantry Battalion, said they received intelligence reports that a cache of high powered rifles was to be transported from Tulunan, Cotabato to Tboli in South Cotabato.
Combined military and police forces then set up checkpoints along the national highway where the arms cache were to pass through.
On Sunday, a red Mitsubishi Lancer was flagged down by the police and military in Barangay Central in Surallah. South Cotabato. But instead of stopping, the driver and his companion drove past the checkpoint prompting the police and soldiers to give chase.
The suspects were finally caught in Barangay Sinolon in Tboli with four AK-47s along with 15 fully loaded magazines.
Seized AK-47s intended for NPA guerillas.Pic by Philippine Army
Lieutenant Colonel Shalimar Imperial, commander officer of the 27th Infantry Battalion, said the NPAs are now resorting to arms smuggling and recruiting members from nearby province after suffering several setbacks and failing to find new recruits among indigenous tribes in South Cotabato.
There were no immediate statements from the NPA rebels operating in the Far South Mindanao Region.
Reports however said the NPA has stepped up arms procurement following a series of seizure of a large number of AK-47s in recent months.
Most of them have their serial numbers removed making it difficult to trace their origin.
Maj. Gen. Rainer Cruz III, head of the AFP’s Eastern Mindanao Command, said the intelligence community is verifying reports these AK-47 were smuggled in on inbound ore transport ships.
Among the areas being monitored is the eastern part of Mindanao, particularly in the Surigao provinces, where mining activities and ore shipment is prevalent.
The AK-47s are a favorite of insurgents and an iconic weapon of liberation movements during the ’70s.
The political arm of the NPA, the Communist Party of the Philippines, reportedly twice attempted to smuggle Chinese-made AK-47s in the mid-70s in what is now known as the Andrea-Karagatan episodes.
The rebels however abandoned their preference for the sturdy Soviet era-designed assault rifle due to scarcity of ammunition. But recent seizures are pointing to renewed rebel interests in AK-47s.
http://asiancorrespondent.com/115322/smuggled-ak-47s-intended-for-ph-reds-seized/
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