CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines — Authorities arrested 40 individuals believed to be members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in a village in Talakag, Bukidnon Monday afternoon, police said.
Police report said the alleged MILF members were all males onboard a truck that was flagged down by law enforcers in Barangay Tikalaan, Talakag at about 3:11 p.m. on Feb. 24, 2020.
In an interview, Capt. Dominador Orate, Talakag police chief, said the men did not resist when stopped by a team of police officers manning a checkpoint in Tikalaan.
“Seeing a truckload of men raised suspicion as it is a rare sight here. So we flagged down the truck and inspected them one by one,” Orate told reporters Tuesday morning.
Orate added, “There was no resistance from the men. In fact, they identified themselves as MILF members.”
He said the group belonged to the Front’s 118 Von Bashier Unit under the Abdulbasser Sulaiman Tahir Base Commander in Camp Badar Talangan, Maguindanao.
All the passengers are said to have originated from Midtimbang, Maguindanao, police said.
Taken from the group’s possession were an M-14 rifle, a fragmentation grenade, an M-14 bandolier, six magazine clips containing ammunition for the M-14 rifle, a two-way handheld radio, 50 pieces of live ammunition, and assorted identification cards belonging to the truck’s passengers, he said.
Based on several ID cards taken from the group, some of the passengers are said to be with the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF).
For instance, the card belonging to a certain Tatokan Munting shows he is with the BIAF’s Camp Bad’r headquarters. His ID card is set to expire this year.
Another card identified an Ibrahim Nabadtog as a “mujahid” (fighter) of the BIAF’s Camp Abubakar al Siddique.
Orate said the group was on its way to a MILF camp in Sitio Libertad, Barangay Dominorog, Talakag when intercepted by police.
Late Monday night, officials from the Office of Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) came and negotiated for the turnover of the men to the agency, Orate said.
Although Orate did not name the OPAPP officials who visited them, he said they are from government coordinating committee on cessation of hostilities.
During the interview, Orate also did not mention where the group was taken by the OPAPP.
He added the Talakag police is in custody of the firearms, ammunition and other items that were seized.
“It is up to the OPAPP if appropriate charges will be filed against those responsible for bringing the firearms and ammunition,” Orate said.
