From the Business Mirror (Jun 30): 8 police trainees, hurt in NPA ambush in Cordillera, given ‘Purple Hearts’
CHIEF Supt. Benjamin Magalong, Cordillera police commander, awarded on Friday the Wounded Personnel Medal to the eight trainees who were injured in an ambush staged by New People’s Army (NPA) guerrillas against a group of 99 trainees who were on a physical fitness run in Kabunagan, Tadian, Mountain Province.
The group’s assistant trainer, Insp. Melinium Bantas, was also wounded in the incident and awarded the medal.
Supt. Dave Limmong, spokesman for the Cordillera police, said the award was given to Alexander Dulnuan, Junete Ngalawen, Jasmine Salve, Jefferson Sari, Edison Waguis, Mitchell Malubon, Pawas Daketan and Robin Benito.
Police Officer 1 Denver Balabag was killed in the ambush.
The wounded policemen are recuperating at the Luis Hora Hospital in Abatan, Bauko town.
The group of trainees was waylaid by NPA rebels belonging to the Leonardo Pacsi Command.
Limmong said the policemen were training to qualify for the Regional Public Safety Battalion.
He said inspection of the ambush site showed the NPA guerrillas waited for the trainees in the area for sometime as proven by recovered items like assorted food stuff and two portable gas stoves. The disturbed portion of the foliage in the area where the rebels hid, Limmong said, was about 50 meters above the road.
Other recovered items that included a radio transceiver, assorted batteries, suspected emulite (commercial explosive), a meter of detonating cord and plastic pipe fragment showed the NPA rebels used an improvised bomb and fired at the trainees using rifle grenades and assault weapons.
“The method used by the NPA rebels showed they don’t select their target and that even unarmed personnel can be targeted. Of the 95 trainees, 70 were female who all came from ordinary families and most if not all were the sole breadwinners of their families,” said Limmong.
Magno Udyaw, spokesman for the NPA Mountain Province Provincial Operations Command (Leonardo Pacsi Command), said the rebels seized 14 high-powered rifles (11 M-16s and three M-14s) from the trainees of the police’s Second Company, Regional Public Safety Battalion.