P.5-million reward offered for information on Pitao slay

DAVAO CITY, Philippines – Mayor Rodrigo Duterte is offering a P500,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the killers of a teacher-daughter of New People’s Army (NPA) leader Leoncio Pitao, alias Commander Parago.

This was confirmed by Chief Superintendent Pedro Tango, Southern Mindanao police director, who said he recommended the amount which the mayor promptly approved.

“I recommended the amount and they (the mayor’s staff) called me up to tell me that it was approved,” he said.

The bounty, according to Tango, would come only from the city government and not from the Philippine National Police or the Department of the Interior and Local Government.

The cash reward has been put up in spite of Pitao’s having tagged 11 operatives of the Military Intelligence Group 10 (MIG-Region 10) and the Military Intelligence Battalion under the Army’s 10th Infantry Division as responsible for the abduction and murder of Pitao’s 21-year-old daughter Rebelyn.

Pitao, leader of the NPA’s Pulang Bagani Command based in the hinterlands of Davao City and its environs, accused military intelligence agents of being behind the spate of killings of militant leaders in the region.

Pitao’s brother Danilo was also killed last year.

Tango said the police-led multi-agency Task Force Rebelyn is pursuing several leads in the kidnap-slaying.

This developed as dxMF Bombo Radyo manager Ronnie Flores and anchorman Lebrico Baring Jr. reportedly received a letter last March 16 via LBC Express from a certain Frank Vegafria of Cagayan de Oro City, alleging that what happened to Pitao’s daughter was some sort of “payment” for the atrocities the elder Pitao had committed against innocent civilians.