Notorious NPA assasins slain in Sorsogon clash

 

CASTILLA, Sorsogon-- Two members of the NPA's death squad were killed after trading fires with Army soldiers in Gubat town here yesterday.

Colonel Joselito Kakilala, the Commander of the Army's 903rd Brigade here, said that troops of the 31st Infantry Battalion clashed with at least 7 members of the Special Partisan Unit (SPARU) of the New People's Army in Bgy Carriedo of the said town at around 9:05 am.

 

The soldiers were conducting security patrol in the village when they received a tip-off about the presence of the dreaded liquidation unit which is responsible for the killing of several members of the government forces including Army soldiers, policemen and civilians.

 

While approaching towards the reported location of the rebels in Centro Dos, the rebels engaged the soldiers in a firefight for about 10 minutes before scampering to various directions.

 

Two of the rebels were killed while some were wounded in the intense firefight. They hurriedly escaped, bringing along some casualties with them.

 

Two dead rebels were left behind in the encounter site. A Cal .45 pistol was found by the soldiers from the hands of one of the fatality.

 

Meanwhile, two soldiers sustained gunshot wounds during the clash.

 

Lt Col Teody Toribio identified the wounded soldiers as Cpl Alfredo Durana who sustained an abdominal wound, and Pfc Louie Lumbang who was wounded in the right thigh.

 

The casualties were promptly evacuated to a local hospital for treatment. The attending physicians have declared them in good medical condition.

Toribio said that residents have identified the dead rebel as a certain Ritchie Espineda, a.k.a. Bilog, the brother-in-law of slain NPA bandit leader Elmer Osila.

 

He said that the residents have been complaining about the NPA's excessive extortion in the hinterland villages.

 

Meanwhile,  Kakilala has reiterated his call for the NPA rebels to go back to the folds of the law.

 

"They should not prolong their hardships by insisting to hide in the mountains to wage armed violence against the government. I don't want to see them dead like these poor fellow Filipinos who were deceived by their recruiters," he said.