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3 cohorts of arrested CPP-NPA leader face raps

By Christopher Lloyd Caliwan

November 28, 2019, 8:39 am

<p><strong>CHARGED.</strong> The NCRPO says the three cohorts of ranking CPP-NPA Jaime Padilla are now facing criminal charges, during their presentation in a press conference on Wednesday (Nov. 27, 2019. Kay Ann Trogon (left); Jefren Banjawan (center; and Rey Rafa (right) were arrested along with Padilla at the Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan City on Monday (Nov. 25, 2019). <em>(Photo courtesy of NCRPO)</em></p>

CHARGED. The NCRPO says the three cohorts of ranking CPP-NPA Jaime Padilla are now facing criminal charges, during their presentation in a press conference on Wednesday (Nov. 27, 2019. Kay Ann Trogon (left); Jefren Banjawan (center; and Rey Rafa (right) were arrested along with Padilla at the Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan City on Monday (Nov. 25, 2019). (Photo courtesy of NCRPO)

MANILA -- Ranking Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army (CPP-NPA) official Jaime Padilla's three companions, who were arrested along with him inside a hospital in San Juan City, are now facing criminal raps, the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) said on Wednesday.

Brig. Gen. Debold Sinas, acting NCRPO chief, said Rey Rafa, 30; Jefren Banjawan, 26; and Kay Ann Trogon, 27, all residents of Laguna, have undergone inquest before the San Juan City Prosecutor's Office on Tuesday for violation of Section 1, Paragraph C of Presidential Decree 1829 (Penalizing Obstruction of Apprehension and Prosecution of Criminal Offenders) and Violation of Article 19 Paragraph 3 of the Revised Penal Code (Harboring, concealing or assisting in the escape of the principal of the crime).

Sinas said the three persons are acting guards of Padilla, spokesperson of the NPA Southern Tagalog and a member of the CPP's National Information Bureau, who has a standing warrant of arrest for multiple murder and kidnapping.

Padilla was arrested by joint operatives from the Eastern Police District and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group-National Capital Region after receiving information about his location in one of the private rooms at the Cardinal Santos Medical Center in San Juan City around 7:30 p.m. Monday.

Meanwhile, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año commended the PNP and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) for "another victory" in the arrest of Padilla.

"It's another victory for the government and the country as we, little by little, extinguish these terrorists who only harbor fear among our people. Kudos to the joint team of the PNP-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), the National Capital Regional Police Office (NCRPO), and the AFP Southern Luzon Command for this arrest. Keep up the good work," Año said in a statement.

Año said the arrest of Padilla, spokesperson of the CPP-NPA’s Southern Tagalog Melito Glor Command, and three of his companions, is a result of the persistent and continuous efforts of the national government and all of its armed instrumentalities to go after the enemies of the state who have continued to sow terror and wage war against the government.

"With this victory, the DILG assures the public that the government will exercise all legal means to ensure that our country will not succumb to the threat of terrorism, and our people will continue to enjoy their freedom," Año said.

In a press conference on Wednesday, DILG Spokesperson and Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya said Padilla’s capture is a big blow to the CPP-NPA.

He said the CPP-NPA continuously suffered huge setbacks because of the increasing number of rebel surrenderers, the successive arrest of communist personalities, and the success of the whole-of-nation approach adopted by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict or NTF-ELCAC.

The CPP-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines. (PNA)

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