RHB leader arrested in Bataan

BALANGA CITY – A top ranking official of the Rebo­lusyunaryong Hukbong Ba­yan (RHB) operating in northern Bataan towns was arrested on Monday afternoon by joint police operatives in the upland village of Roose­velt, Dinalu­pihan town, this province.

Senior Superintendent Manuel Gaerlan, Bataan police director, identified the suspected subversive leader as Feliciano Gatchalian, alias Ka Selo or Seng, a leader of the Area Party Collective of Dinalu­pihan and Hermosa towns.

Two companions of Gat­chalian escaped police dragnet by running toward the thickly-forested Roosevelt park when they sensed the approaching police and army intelligence teams.

Gaerlan told The STAR that Gatchalian, who is listed in the Order of Battle as one of the top 10 subversive leaders in the province, had several criminal cases including robbery in band with the frustrated murder of Indian businessmen, robbery/hold-ups of Victory Liner and Genesis buses last year. – With Ric Sapnu