Boat captain slain in attack off Tawi-Tawi

MANILA, Philippines - A boat captain was reported dead while a fisherman remains missing when armed men fired at a fishing boat Saturday night near Mapun Island in Tawi-Tawi, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported yesterday.

The fatality was identified as Arante Tacder, while the missing fisherman was Braming Panas, said PCG Palawan district commander Enrico Eric Evangelista.

“The incident happened near Mapun Island, which is 80 miles off Mangsee Island  in Palawan. These are good fishing grounds,” he said.

Evangelista said they have yet to determine the cause of the shooting. They are looking at the possibility that the gunmen were engaged in illegal fishing.

He said they would scour the area where the incident took place to see if the armed men are still there and to check if there are witnesses.

The PCG official said while the incident happened off Mapun Island, which is under the jurisdiction of the PCG Southwestern Mindanao district, the fishermen were residents of Puerto Princesa. He said the incident was reported by the fishermen themselves.

Reports reaching the PCG Palawan showed the F/B Glenn Mar-B, with 10 fishermen on board, left Puerto Princesa on July 2.

The boat was near Mapun Island when it was attacked at around 10 p.m. Saturday, prompting the fishermen to jump into the water.

The fishermen returned to Puerto Princesa yesterday morning.

Evangelista said they have alerted the PCG Southwestern Mindanao district, which dispatched two boats with PCG Special Operations Group (SOG) divers to patrol the area around Mapun Island.

PCG spokesman Commander Armand Balilo said the SOG divers were searching for the missing fisherman and the armed men.