Police chief, 6 other cops relieved

CAMP RUPERTO KANGLEON PALO, Leyte – The PNP regional director here has ordered the immediate relief of Inspector Severino Solis, chief of police of Hinabangan, Samar five days after local communist guerrillas raided the municipal hall where the police station is located.

Chief Superintendent Abner Cabalquinto said Solis was placed under floating status at the police regional office while the investigation is going on in connection with the raid to find out whether Solis and the six policemen on duty are liable for administrative charges or not.

Earlier, the six policemen on duty who were identified by Senior Superintendent Pio Manito, chief of PRO-8 operations division, as PO1 Marlon Plata, PO2 Rowel Mazdo, PO2 Rufino Abadiano, PO1 Elizalde Ricalde, PO1 Joel Calesa and PO1 Samuel Otibar were already relieved and are at camp restriction at the Samar PNP provincial office to ensure that there will be no whitewash in the investigation.

The NPA leader of the group who staged the said attack was earlier identified as Baltazar Abarratigue alias Ka Batig and Ka Homer.

However, the policemen on duty claimed they were able to retaliate against the NPAs when they ran to the second floor of the municipal hall where they engaged the raiders in a one-hour gunbattle.

One high-ranking official of the police regional office told the Freeman in a separate interview that probers are exerting efforts to complete the investigation before filing criminal charges against the identified NPA leader who led the attack.

The said official, who refused to be identified, said investigators are also exploring other evidences that would link National Democratic Front in Eastern Visayas spokesperson Santiago Salas and other regional leaders of the CPP/NPA operating in the region as mastermind of the said attack.

“We will just submit whatever result of our investigation and file charges against them because obviously in every atrocity it has a direct supervision and well-planned attack coming from the NPA local leaders in the region,” the same source said.

The PNP is set to file murder, robbery and other possible criminal and civil charges against the rebels considering that the local government unit of Hinabangan earlier estimated that at least P1 million damage was caused by grenade explosions lobbed by the NPA raiders.

The division offices including the office of the mayor were ransacked with office equipment and other facilities missing and believed to have been taken by the attackers.

CAFGU member Pedro Abadiano was the lone fatality during the attack.

The PNP regional headquarters continue to strengthen their troops in the field to complete the target number of policemen detailed in every police station to have enough force to fight in every attack.