By NITZ ARANCON and JOEY NACALABAN
Correspondents
A POLICE officer and one of five heavily armed civilians were killed in a shootout at a checkpoint in Barangay Dolong in Libertad town, Misamis Oriental, at around 8:30 pm Monday.
Capt. Rham Camelotes, Libertad police chief, identified the fatalities as S/Sgt. Roland Caayupan and one Jephone Fabriga Tinamisan, 33, of Purok 5, Biñadero, Ozamiz City, Misamis Occidental.
Two others were wounded — M/Sgt. Fernando Maestrado who was hit in the left thigh, and a woman named Gemma Patlunag who was grazed.
Police also arrested one of the suspects, 31-year-old Richardson Perez of Bangcal, Mahayahay, Cebu. His address here is Barra, Opol town, Misamis Oriental.
Libertad Mayor Reynaldo Uy ordered the suspension of classes in the elementary and high school levels in his town to keep school children safe as the manhunt for the three remaining suspects continued yesterday.
Police said the group was heavily armed — they abandoned a white Mitsubishi Mirage car, with license plates BOJ-805, and left behind two KG9 machine pistols, four caliber .45 pistols and four grenades.
The slain suspect, Tinamisan, had five sachets of suspected shabu with him, alleged the police.
Authorities said the remaining suspects are believed armed and dangerous.
Police director for Misamis Oriental Col. Robert Roy Bahian said the police officers responded to a traffic accident near a bridge and manned a checkpoint on the highway when they stopped the suspects’ car for inspection.
Bahian said the suspects greeted the police officers with gunfire and killed S/Sgt. Caayupan who was shot to the chest.
He said the law enforcers returned fire, hitting and killing Tinamisan, one of the suspects. The suspect was shot to the abdomen.
Capt. Camelotes said Tinamisan, who was driving the car, stepped down as Caayupan approached the suspects. He said what followed were gunshots coming from the car.
“Ang nahibilin nga upat ka suspetsado naglumba og pangambak sa tulay. Nagtoo sila adunay tubig sa ubos,” Camelotes said.
Police said Perez hurt himself after jumping off the Taytayan Bridge. Perez could not walk because his right leg was fractured; he was placed behind bars in a police detention cell.
Col. Renante Reyes, deputy police director for operations, said investigators were still trying to find out why the suspects were heavily armed and what they supposedly planned to do.
“Under investigation pa. Mao nang dili pa nato mahatag ang detalyi ngano nga ingon niini ka high-powered firearms ang dala niining mga suspects,” Col. Bahian said. (with reports from Mindanews)
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