Suspected rebels gun down 2 cops in Masbate — Army

Suspected communist rebels gunned down on Monday two local policemen in Masbate province, a regional Army spokesman said. Maj. Harold Cabunoc of the Army's 9th Infantry Division identified the fatalities as PO3 Nonilon Agbones and SPO1 Nilo Abejuela, both assigned with the Pio V Corpus town police station. Based on initial findings, Cabunoc said the victims were on their way to report for work aboard a motorcycle when fired upon by five suspected New People's Army (NPA) rebels in Malamag village around 7 a.m. Responding government forces later found spend casings for M16 and M14 rifles at the crime scene. Authorities described the area as a "traditional NPA ambush site." In 2003, Cabunoc said the town’s police chief was killed in an NPA ambush in the same area. A joint military-police team is conducting pursuit operations against the perpetrators. — RSJ, GMANews.TV