8 armed men linked to killing of village councilman arrested

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MIDSAYAP, COTABATO—Police have arrested eight armed men claiming to be members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) who were linked to the killing of a village councilman here.

Lt. Colonel John Miridel Calinga, Midsayap police chief, said the suspects were arrested by a team of police and Army personnel in Barangay Kudarangan on Thursday afternoon.

Calinga said the suspects were identified by witnesses to be behind the killing of Tho Puyo Singh, 73, Barangay Kagawad of Kudarangan village, and Bayao Mohamad Uka, 58, a member of the Barangay Peacekeeping Action Team (BPAT) before dawn on Thursday.

The predominantly Muslim village of Kudarangan is one of the 63 barangays of Cotabato province that are now part of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

Police are looking at “rido” (family feud) as the cause of hostilities between the group of MNLF member Tho Puyo Singh and MNLF members Sukarno Madidis Katog and Subandro Madidis Katog, all residents of Barangay Kudarangan.

A hot pursuit operation was conducted by Midsayap police and troopers from the Army’s 34th Infantry Battalion that led to the arrest of the suspects.

They did not resist when soldiers and policemen disarmed them, but registered their claim to be members of the MNLF, Calinga said.

Seized from them were 14 various assault rifles (M-16 and M-14), which were unlicensed, and ammunition.

The suspects are now detained at the Midsayap municipal police station while charges for illegal possession of firearms are being prepared against them.