Maguindanao massacre suspect killed in clash

COTABATO City, Philippines - A key suspect in the Nov. 23, 2009 Maguindanao massacre was killed while five policemen and a soldier were seriously wounded in a firefight in Shariff Aguak on Monday, the military said.

Col. Edgar Gonzales, commanding officer of the Army’s 1st Infantry Mechanized Brigade, identified the slain massacre suspect as Dayna Ampatuan, who, along with his followers, engaged a team of policemen and soldiers that tried to serve a warrant for his arrest.

Ampatuan is a relative of former Maguindanao Gov. Andal Ampatuan now detained, along with his three sons and several other relatives, in connection with the massacre.

Gonzales said a team of policemen from the Maguindanao provincial police office and soldiers attempted to arrest Ampatuan after learning of his presence in one of the barangays in Shariff Aguak from local residents.

“Initial intelligence reports reaching us indicated that Ampatuan resisted and engaged the policemen and soldiers in a firefight. His companions joined in the foray,” Gonzales told reporters.

Gonzales said Ampatuan’s group was outgunned by government forces as the firefight ensued.

“He was killed in the process. His cadaver has been retrieved by his relatives from the scene of the encounter,” Gonzales said.

Local officials said three wounded gunmen were seen being carried away from the scene by followers of the slain massacre suspect.

Gonzales said they have asked the 6th Infantry Division to immediately report the incident to the joint Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities.

The committee, comprised of soldiers, policemen and representatives of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, oversees law enforcement actions against criminals and terrorists in areas covered by the 1997 Agreement on General Cessation of Hostilities.

Ampatuan's companions were last reported to have escaped to a marshy area covered by the government-MILF ceasefire accord.