PNP tags NPA in killing of councilor
Credit to Author: Tempo Desk| Date: Mon, 01 Apr 2019 06:43:18 +0000
The Philippine National Police yesterday tagged the New People’s Army in the killing of a municipal councilor in Negros Occidental the other day.
Police Brig. Gen. John Bulalacao, Western Visayas police chief, said more or less 50 communist rebels stormed the house of Councilor Jolomar Hilario in Barangay Inolingan in Moises Padilla.
“The victim has been receiving threats from the New People’s Army weeks before he was shot dead,” said Bulalacao.
The 51-year old councilor is seeking reelection in the midterm elections next month.
But he was reportedly warned by the NPA not to run again.
Bulalacao said the NPA rebels arrived onboard a truck at Hilario’s house. They looked for Hilario, who was sleeping inside his room, and shot him several times, despite the pleading of his relatives.
The NPA rebels came from the mountainous boundary of Moises Padilla and Guihulngan, Negros Oriental, according to Bulalacao.
They commandeered a truck in a sugarcane plantation and used it in going to the house of the victim.
“Responding government troops were not able to respond immediately due to road blocks placed by the NPAs,” said Bulalacao.
Bulalacao said he has created a task group to speed up the investigation.
“I also ordered the mobile forces to double the efforts in hunting down the terrorists,” said Bulalacao. (Aaron Recuenco)