NPA commander, 2 cohorts killed in Antipolo
Credit to Author: Darwin Pesco| Date: Thu, 05 Dec 2019 16:21:33 +0000
A COMMANDER of the National People’s Army (NPA) and his two cohorts were killed in an encounter with the police in Antipolo City on Thursday. In a report to Camp Crame, the Left commander was identified as Armando Lazarte alias “Pat Romano.” His first companion was a certain “Bisaya,” while the second one was still unidentified. In a joint operation of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police (PNP), a warrant of arrest was served against Lazarte for murder and frustrated murder. The suspects fired first at the operatives, triggering the authorities to retaliate, wounding the suspects hiding in their safe house in Barangay Cupang. The three were declared dead on arrival in a hospital. Lazarte was the No. 2 official of Communist groups in Southern Tagalog. “I call on all our brothers in the mountains that they could break free and side again with the government and have a new life,” PNP spokesman Brig. Gen. Banac said in a chance interview. Lazarte was the secretary of Southern Tagalog Regional Party Committee Sub-Regional Military Area 4A.
According to Lt. Col. Christopher Diaz, commander of the 80th Infantry Battalion, Lazarte led the burning of equipment at the Kaliwa Dam. Recovered in Lazarte’s safe house were an M16 rifle, one 9mm pistol, one cal .45 pistol, two hand grenades, laptops, cellphones and alleged subversive documents. On November 26, an alleged NPA leader named as Jaime Padilla was apprehended in an operation in San Juan City. Padilla was the spokesman of the NPA Southern Tagalog and member of the National Information Bureau of the Communist Party of the Philippines Central Committee.