NPA leader arrested while getting treatment in Bukidnon hospital

DAVAO CITY – A communist rebel leader blamed for a series of attacks here and nearby areas last year was arrested while undergoing treatment for gunshot wounds at a hospital in Bukidnon.

The military on Saturday confirmed that Elizalde Cañete, alias Ka Jinggoy, was arrested inside a hospital in Don Carlos, Bukidnon around 10 a.m.

Maj. Ezra Balagtey, the spokesperson of the Eastern Mindanao Command, desribed Cañete as the successor to Leoncio Pitao, alias Commander Parago, who was killed in an encounter in Paquibato district here in 2015, as head of the Pulang Bagani Company 1 of the New People’s Army.

This NPA unit operates in the tri-boundaries of Bukidnon and Davao del Norte provinces and Davao City.

Cañete was reportedly wounded in a recent clash in Kitaotao, Bukidnon.

According to Balagtey, Cañete was arrested by virtue of several arrest warrants for a string of murder and arson charges due to his group’s attacks on government forces, civilians and businesses in Davao City, particularly the spate of attacks against Lapanday Foods Corp. (LFC) last year that resulted in over P1 billion in losses and death of fish vendor Larry Buenafe.

He said Cañete also faced similar cases in other parts of the region due to his involvement in NPA attacks in Compostela Valley and Agusan del Sur, where he also used to head a rebel fighting unit.

The Compostela Valley native was first arrested in 2010 after getting wounded in a firefight with the 3rd Scout Rangers Battalion in Laak town, Compostela Valley. Three of his followers died in that fighting.

“However he was able to jump bail sometime in 2013 and went back to the terror group,” Balagtey said.

Lt. Gen. Benjamin Madrigal Jr., Eastmincom chief, hailed Canete’s arrest.

“The arrest of Jinggoy and his eventual prosecution will now give justice to the victims of his many atrocities, particularly to the late Larry Buenafe who was just peacefully earning a living when he was killed by an NPA-laid landmine,” Madrigal said.

He added that the military would coordinate with the Philippine National Police in providing security while the rebel leader was undergoing treatment. /atm