PNP-PIO PR
Police maneuver forces in Central Mindanao scrambled in hot pursuit of group of armed men who went on a 2-hour rampage in Datu Piang, Maguindanao last night.
In Camp Crame, PNP Chief, Police General Debold M Sinas, alerted the PNP Special Action Force for possible tactical support to the ongoing pursuit operations by the Police Regional Office-BAR.
The PNP Command Center monitored report that some 50 armed men believed to be led by a certain Sala and Commander Karialan harassed the townhall of Datu Piang, the Municipal Police Station and the Sta. Teresita Catholic Church at 9:25 PM on Thursday.
Initial reports said the armed men were believed to be affiliated with the Dawlah Islamiya and a splinter faction of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighter (BIFF).
A PNP patrol car was burned in the attack while no major damages were reported in the surrounding structures. The armed men fled minutes before midnight as reinforcement troops arrived, the report disclosed. No casualties were reported.
“The police will file criminal charges against those terrorists responsible for the attack and burning of our patrol car, as we assure the Datu Piang residents of intensified security measures to prevent similar threats posed by violent extremists in the future”, Sinas said.
