The Philippine National Police in Negros Oriental has filed charges of illegal possession of firearms and ammunition, and illegal possession of explosives against two farmhands, who were arrested Monday in Sitio Nagba, Barangay Lag-it, in Tayasan town.

Supt. Reynold Andot, chief of the PNP Provincial Intelligence Bureau, said suspects Edwin Deguit and Albert Romano, both of Bindoy, Negros Oriental, were charged Tuesday before the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office.

Following inquest proceedings, a resolution for the commitment of the suspects was issued by the prosecutor, so Deguit and Romano were locked up in the district jail of Manjuyod town, he added.

The suspects were arrested by joint operatives of the police and the Philippine Army at about 5:30 p.m. Monday, on the strength of a warrant issued by Judge Candelario Gonzalez Jr. of the Regional Trial Court Branch 45 in Bais City, Negros Oriental.

The joint team also recovered a cache of high-powered firearms, ammunition and explosives, including two M16 armalite rifles with six magazines and 75 rounds of live ammunition; two 12-gauge shotguns with nine rounds of live ammunition; three .38 caliber revolvers with five rounds of live ammunition; and two rifle grenades.

Police reports show that the suspects have been tagged as members of the New People’s Army. But Deguit and Romano denied the allegation, saying that they worked as watchmen in the cattle farm.

Senior Supt. Edward Carranza, director of the Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office, said that after a surveillance done by the police and military intelligence operatives, the police “applied for a search warrant on the properties…on the belief that there were two watchmen who are being employed (and) carrying firearms”.

Carranza said they are now determining whether the firearms are registered or not. “The PNP will subject (the guns) to ballistics examination. The weapons will also be cross-matched to determine whether they were used in past atrocities”, he added.

Carranza said the firearms could also be owned by the military but acquired by the NPA during encounters.*JFP

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