Long-wanted murder suspect, 2 companions arrested in Cotabato City

COTABATO CITY — Policemen arrested a 29-year-old man wanted for murder and detained his two companions for alleged possession of .45 caliber pistols during a checkpoint operation on a highway in Barangay Poblacion 9, Cotabato City, on Monday morning, October 20.

City officials and barangay leaders told reporters at noon on Monday that while the police were initially set to arrest only Almansor Mangulamas, they also detained his companions, 37-year-old Hamim Calawan and 41-year-old Samsudin Adam, for carrying pistols as they attempted to pass through a checkpoint in Barangay Poblacion 9, on their way to an unknown location in Cotabato City.

In late 2021, Mangulamas was charged with murder at the Regional Trial Court, Branch 28, in Midsayap, Cotabato.

The warrant of arrest for Mangulamas, a resident of Barangay Simuay in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao del Norte, was signed by Judge Rainera Pareja Osua, dated Jan. 3, 2022.

Calawan is also a resident of Barangay Simuay, while Adam is from Barangay Balut in Sultan Mastura, Maguindanao del Norte, which is not too distant from Sultan Kudarat.

Brig. Gen. Jaysen De Guzman, director of the Police Regional Office-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region, said the checkpoint operation that led to the arrest of the three individuals, including one wanted for murder, was jointly carried out by personnel from the Cotabato City Police Office, led by Col. Jibin Bongcayao, along with operatives from Cotabato City Police Station 2 and various units of PRO-BAR.

De Guzman said a unit in Cotabato City of the Navy’s 1st Marine Brigade also supported the operation that led to their arrest.

He said policemen were swiftly deployed along a stretch of highway in Barangay Poblacion 9 early Monday after confidential informants tipped off authorities that Mangulamas was traveling to Cotabato City from Barangay Simuay via the route.