MILF to help pursue killers of 4 family members in NoCot

From the Philippine News Agency (Oct 10, 2020): MILF to help pursue killers of 4 family members in NoCot (By John Andrew Tabugoc)

CARNAGE SURVIVOR. One of the four survivors in the carnage that took place on Friday (Oct. 9, 2020) in Barangay Lagunde, Pikit, North Cotabato, is treated for gunshot wounds at a local hospital after a group of armed men fired at their house. Four members of the family, all females that included a three-year-old, were killed during the shooting. (Photo courtesy of Jess M. Ali – DXMY-RMN Cotabato)

PIKIT, North Cotabato – The Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) vowed to help authorities pursue the armed group responsible for the killing of four family members and wounding of four others in a remote village here on Friday.

In an interview, Capt. Mautin Pangandigan, Pikit chief of police, said the MILF 108th brigade base command has expressed intention to help speed up the capture of the perpetrators behind the crime.

Pangandigan said they already have the identities of the suspects based on the information provided by a survivor, but declined to name them in public as not to jeopardize ongoing pursuit operations.

“The MILF assistance is a huge help to track down the suspects now on the run to evade authorities”, he said.

On Friday noon, four armed men emerged at Sitio Tugunan, Barangay Lagunde, and shot the house of the victims.

Killed on the spot were Sittie Alipolo Abdullah, 58; Zenaida Abdullah Mustapha, 36; Laga Abdullah 34; and a three-year-old toddler.

Those injured who have been confined at a hospital are Asria Abdulrajak Abdullah, 30, and three minors aged 13, 8, and 7.

Police investigators said “retaliation” was the primary motive in the attack, linked to a recent police anti-drug operation in the village that resulted in the confiscation of illegal drugs.

Pangandigan said a member of the Barangay Peacekeeping Action Team (BPAT) who owns the residence that was attacked was among those who accompanied the police and the barangay captain in the anti-drug operation.

Pangandigan said Barangay Lagunde, some 15 kilometers from the town center, is considered as a critical area by law enforcers due to the presence of armed lawless groups in the area.

“The BPAT member who lives in that house was the target of the suspects but was not inside when the carnage took place,” Pangandigan said.

The dead victims were buried according to customary Muslim rites also on Friday.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1118081