While some believe that the New People’s Army was behind the ambush, residents of Barangay Mat-i where the incident occurred blamed the so-called "White Eagle" group, mostly composed of members of the Philippine Benevolent Missionaries Association, a Surigao-based religious cult, involved in small-scale mining in the area.
The policemen had just come from the city’s watershed on Mount Parang-Parang, which they cleared of illegal miners, when they were fired at.
Meanwhile, PO1 Orlando Aurora Jr., who was part of the convoy, returned home safely yesterday. — Ben Serrano