Police official taken by armed men in North Cotabato

Published: 11:53 a.m., Dec. 29, 2017 | Updated: 11:13 p.m., Dec. 29, 2017

KIDAPAWAN CITY—Armed men, believed to be communist rebels, on Thursday abducted a police official in President Roxas town in North Cotabato province, reports said on Friday.

Senior Supt. Jonathan Tangonan, North Cotabato police director, said Insp. Menardo Cui, deputy police chief of President Roxas town, was in a store in Barangay Poblacion when four armed men came and took him at gunpoint at 8 p.m. Thursday.

Tangonan said Cui came from Magpet town, where he lived, and dropped by the store on his way to the President
Roxas police station.

Supt. Bernard Tayong, speaking for the North Cotabato police, said they were verifying reports that the armed men introduced themselves as New People’s Army (NPA) rebels.

Tangonan said while the NPA had yet to own up to Cui’s abduction, no other armed group operated in Magpet and President Roxas except communist rebels.

“The NPA is known to seize policemen and soldiers at every opportunity. Abductions carried out by the rebels also happened in other areas,” he added.

Cui’s abduction happened more than three weeks after NPA rebels freed a police officer they held in Makilala town, also in North Cotabato, in August.

PO1 Bristol Catalan Jr. was turned over by the rebels to religious leaders in Magpet on Dec. 4.

/cbb /pdi