Masked gunmen massacre family of 5

Lambayong, Sultan Kudarat — Masked men barged into a farmhouse in this town last Tuesday night and fatally shot a family of five and then briefly took three of their neighbors hostage, authorities said.

A relative identified the fatalities as Bonifacio Tabayoyon, 86; his wife, Emiliana, 80; son-in-law Wilson Momo, 50, and his wife, Leonida Momo, 48; and their son Crisanto Momo, 22.

They sustained multiple gunshot wounds from M-14, M-16 and Garand rifles, police said.

The three children in the Tabayoyon household — Nerisa, 10; Wilson Jr., 8; and Criscel Jane, 5 — escaped unhurt because they were able to hide under the bed shortly after the armed men barged into their house, probers said.

The three children were described to be in a "state of shock." The police and the military are now keeping them in an undisclosed safehouse.

The victims were reportedly watching an early evening newscast when the incident happened.

The assailants reportedly took three firearms (a Carbine and two Garand rifles) and P100,000 in cash from the Tabayoyons’ residence.

As they fled, the armed men took Purao Pascua, 40, Rudy Alitna, 42, and Danilo Pulna, 39, hostage. The three, who were on their way home, heard the commotion inside the victims’ house. But as they got near the door, the attackers’ lookouts accosted them. They were later released with minor injuries.

Col. Jerry Jalandoni, deputy commander of the Army’s 604th Infantry Brigade based in Tacurong City, said they are not discounting the possible involvement of Moro rebels in the killing.

He noted that the armed men withdrew toward the Maguindanao-Sultan Kudarat border where Moro rebels encamp.

"Police and the military are still probing the motive," he said.

Jalandoni believes that robbery is just a secondary motive, saying, "Mayroon isang mabigat na dahilan kung bakit pa nila pinatay yung mga biktima (There’s a deeper reason why they killed the victims)."

Reports said the Tabayoyon couple were engaged in small-scale lending and owned 30 hectares of land in Palembang, Sultan Kudarat.