Soldier charged for killing, wounding fellow soldiers in Lanao del Sur

ILIGAN CITY –– A soldier who sprayed bullets on his fellow soldiers last Dec. 24, 2019, in Lanao del Sur has surrendered to authorities and is now facing charges for the crime.

Army Corporal Nao Mohammad Lassam, who used to be commander of a Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU) detachment in Pagayawan, Lanao del Sur, was charged on Tuesday at the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office in Marawi City for two counts of murder and five counts of frustrated murder.

Lassam was serving as a guide to a team of soldiers from the 55th Infantry Battalion, who assisted cops in probing the ambush of the police chief of Binidayan town a day earlier.

The ambush site is some 500 meters away from the CAFGU detachment Lassam led.

While on their way to the ambush area, Lassam opened fire on his fellow soldiers, killing two and wounding five.

Lassam, who hails from Maguindanao, fled after the shooting.

Captain Clint Antipala, acting Public Affairs Officer of the Army’s 1st Infantry Division, said the suspect went into hiding after the incident.

Lassam surrendered to the Army stationed in Tagum City last January 12 and was turned over to the Marantao police station, Antipala added.

Brigadier General Generoso Ponio, commander of the Army’s 1st Infantry Division, said they would see to it that their erring personnel would be given due process and made to answer for his wrongdoing, whether in the military or civilian system of justice.

Edited by Lzb