Police agents arrest North Cotabato bomber, 4 others

KIDAPAWAN CITY– Police authorities nabbed a suspected bomber and gun-for-hire in a surprise raid they conducted in Kabacan town, North Cotabato on early Friday morning. Police identified the suspect as Derby Gani, also known as, ‘Manok’, 35, and a resident of Barangay Lower Paatan, Kabacan. Senior Superintendent Alex Tagum, provincial director of the Cotabato PNP, said the suspect was tagged as one of the ‘brains’ of the series of grenade throwing incidents and explosions in Kabacan town and in nearby towns of Carmen and Pikit, all in North Cotabato. They recovered from the suspect a caliber pistol and berretta which, data showed, were issued to two police officers who figured in previous shooting incidents in North Cotabato.The guns were issued to a certain SPO1 Oro and SPO1 Desendario. Also seized from Gani was a fragmentation grenade, the same type of explosive that was used in three grenade throwing incidents in Kabacan that wounded six bystanders and commuters.Four others were arrested with Gani, according to Supt. Bernard Tayong, North Cotabato police spokesperson. He was also tagged as behind the explosions that destroyed several towers of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) stationed in Pikit town, also in North Cotabato. Tagum said they launched a ‘special operation’ against Gani after a search warrant was issued against him by a local court in Kidapawan City. Gani’s arrest was also part of CPPO’s, ‘one time, big time’ operations against drug syndicates and other criminals and lawless elements operating in North Cotabato. Friday’s operations were already CPPO’s third, since October. Tagum assured their operations would continue as long as criminals ‘thrive’ in the province.