NPAs ambush soldiers
responding to request for assistance in Eastern Samar
By Philippine Information Agency (PIA 8)
March
1, 2012
CAMP LUKBAN,
Catbalogan City – A military escort team of the 43rd Infantry
Battalion based in
Eastern Samar was ambushed by about thirty communist terrorists on
February 27 at about
8:00 o’clock in the
evening at the vicinity of Barangay Antipolo in the municipality of
Llorente in Eastern Samar.
Lt. Colonel Niceforo
Diaz, spokesman of the 8th Infantry Division, informed that the team
was on board a military vehicle, responding to the request for law
enforcement assistance from the Regional Trial Court Branch III of
Guiuan to secure confiscated illegally-mined Chromite minerals when it
was ambushed.
The military vehicle
was damaged when communist terrorists detonated the four (4) landmines
they planted along the road.
The soldiers fought
back and bravely held their ground for about an hour until the
perpetrators were repelled causing them to retreat with a number of
casualties.
One soldier, however,
Private First Class Erwin G. Ocenada, a native of Paranas, Western
Samar was killed in the incident, Lt. Colonel Diaz said.
Seven soldiers were
wounded as well but only three remain under treatment at a hospital in
the City of Borongan as of press time.
Meanwhile, Eastern
Samar Provincial Police Director Manuel Cubillo in an earlier
statement informed that upon learning of the incident on February 27,
elements of the Llorente Municipal Police and the Eastern Samar
Provincial Police Office immediately proceeded to the scene of the
crime.
Director Cubillo said
that the military team was led by Sgt. Rogelio Barbosa together with
some 13 soldiers were ambushed and land mined by more or less thirty
heavily armed communist terrorists led by an unidentified female
commander.
Recovered from the
scene, Director Cubillo said, were two (2) unexploded hand granades,
assorted ammunitions and empty shells of different calibers and one
(1) magazine of AK 47 assault rifle loaded with 40 live ammunitions
and personal belongings of communist terrorists.
The Eastern Samar
National Police continues to conduct thorough investigation regarding
the said incident.
The Eastern Samar
Provincial Police Director underscored that despite the incident on
February 27, Eastern Samar remains to be generally peaceful.