ZAMBOANGA CITY - - A suspected leader of a kidnapping syndicate and one of his accomplices were killed in a clash with a military intelligence unit Thursday morning in the coastal village of Gutalac town, Zamboanga del Norte.
The slain suspect was identified as Jaojin Salam alias Jaujin Salam, tagged as the second most wanted criminal in Western Mindanao and leader of a kidnapping syndicate operating in Zamboanga del Norte, while his companion remains unidentified.
Senior Inspector Joseph Ortega, spokesman of Police Regional Office 9 (PRO), said the intelligence personnel of the 10th Infantry Battalion and the 9th Intelligence Service Unit (ISU) encountered the group of Salam about 9:30 a.m. Thursday at the coastal area of Gutalac.
Salam and his followers were believed to be escaping as the joint security forces of the police 5th Special Action Battalion (SAB) under the Special Action Force, Philippine Center for Transnational Crime (PCTC), and Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) were serving his warrant of arrest for various crimes, including kidnapping.
The encounter ensued for 20 minutes and left Salam and a follower killed while the rest of his armed companions escaped and eluded arrest.
The troops recovered the remains of the suspects and two M14 rifles in the encounter site.
The military and police have stepped up the pursuit operation against the kidnap syndicates in the region following a standing order from President Benigno Aquino III to neutralize these gangs that are operating not just in the region but also outside the country and spiriting their captives to Sulu.
The intensified security operation has led to the death of 10 Abu Sayyaf militants and wounded 13 others during encounter in Patikul, Sulu on Thursday.
However, the encounter also left a junior officer and seven soldiers dead and 24 others wounded. - Roel Pareño
Separate pursuing troops and police forces also pressured another kidnapping gang in Basilan, leading to the release of young cosmetics dealer Sabrina Ikbala Voon Wednesday. - Roel Pareño