Palawan police nabs top NPA leader

From the Philippine News Agency (Feb 10): Palawan police nabs top NPA leader

Since year 2000, police and military authorities in this city and the whole province have been tracking down Sonny Gonzales to capture him, the highest commander of the identified communist-terrorist Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army (CPP-NPA) in Palawan.

Early Sunday morning, Gonzales, also known as Gilbert Silagan, alias Ka Glenn and Ka Marlon, ended his more than 13-year effort to evade government authorities, who were pursuing him when he was arrested with his wife Alma Morenoo, alias Ka Carol, in Barangay Inogbong, Bataraza.

Senior Police Superintendent David Martinez, the head of the Provincial Police Office (PPO) in Palawan, said in interviews that Silagan, who has a P3-million bounty over his head, was arrested after they were able to track his location in Bataraza.

Martinez said that when police authorities in Bataraza informed him that they spotted Silagan, he immediately dispatched an intelligence team to the town to make further confirmations regarding his movements.

“It is true. This couple is highly mobile, so when they were spotted in the southern part of the province in Buliluyan, we immediately sent a team of intelligence personnel to focus on tracking them. When they found and confirmed the area where they were staying in Bataraza, our policemen operated to arrest them,” Martinez said.

The Palawan police commander said that Silagan has seven standing warrants of arrest for murder and arson, while his wife Ka Carol has a P150,000 bounty and is wanted for murder and attempted murder.

“Since early 2000, Gilbert Silagan has been wanted by authorities for being the highest leader of the NPA in Palawan. He appears to be the provincial commander of the NPA,” he said, adding the rebel leader did not put up a fight when the arrest was made.

Martinez said they are now coordinating with the Palawan Regional Trial Court (RTC) to determine what other cases have been filed against Silagan and Moreno, who are also believed to be behind several atrocities staged by the NPA in the province.

As of this writing, the two remain under the heavily guarded custody of the PPO. Charges are now being prepared for filing, Martinez said.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=614460