Troops raid NPA safe house in Quezon

Army troops raided a suspected New People’s Army (NPA) safe house in Tagka­wayan, Quezon at dawn yesterday but failed to capture rebel spokesman Gregorio “Ka Roger” Rosal.

Their objective was  Juanito Mendoza, alias Ka Macky, Rosal’s top security aide, who was able to escape before the soldiers swooped down on his house in Sitio Sabang, Tagka­wayan at about 2 a.m.

“Troops under the 74th Infantry Battalion, on an intel­­­li­gence-driven strike operations, raided the house of Men­­doza who was able to elude arrest,” said Lt. Gen. Alexander Yano, Armed Forces Southern Luzon Command chief.

Mendoza, was former secretary of the Guerrilla Front Committee 41 based in Bon­doc Peninsula.

Army troops raided Men­doza’s house on the belief that Rosal was there.

The soldiers seized a .22 caliber sniper rifle with scope, one Armscor shotgun, one Sigsuer  9mm pistol, two night vision goggles, one telescope and several blasting caps  from Mendoza’s house.

Lt. Col. Erick Parayno, Sol­com spokesman said, the recovery of the night vision goggles only showed that the NPA has already in their possession modern night equipment  only available to the elite forces of the military.

“The operation is part of the stepped up campaign launched by the 2nd Infantry Division to clear the area of NPA rebels,” he said.

According to the latest intelligence reports, Rosal is gravely ill and is no longer hiding in the rebels‘ jungle lairs but staying in lowland com­munities.

“We almost got him,” one military source said, describing their recent operations somewhere in Southern Taga­log where Rosal was able to elude arrest reportedly with the help of a local chief executive.

Military intelligence sources described Rosal as a “dying man” who could barely walk and could only move around with the help of aides.