ILIGAN CITY — The 5th Mechanized Infantry Battalion, Philippine Army, raided on Saturday morning, August 17, a “camp” of an armed group in Sapad, Lanao del Norte.
The soldiers engaged in a firefight with an armed group led by certain Norjamal Tomarompong, in a clearing operation.
The place, located at the boundaries of Salvador town, is “well-fortified” with running trenches and foxholes according to Lt. Col Rolando Orengo, commander of the 5th Mechanized Batallion.
Their troops were able to exchange gunfires with around 20 members of the group for about 35 minutes in an area four kilometres away from the thickly-populated community.
The armed men scampered to different directions that led to the recovery of an M14, M16, two garrand rifles, a rifle grenade, magazines and several ammunitions.
Orengo said Tomarompong’s group is an “auxiliary threat group” that engages in kidnapping, murder, robbery and even in shooting incidents because of ‘rido’ or family feud.
Tomarompong is known to be from Salvador town whose group operates in the three nearby towns: Salvador, Sapad and Kapatagan.
“The latest murder they are involved was the killing of an ice cream vendor and a relative of a barangay official in Salvador,” Orengo said.
There was no casualty from the government forces but the military believed the firefight incurred casualties to the armed group after seeing blood stains in their withdrawal route.
