COTABATO CITY – Police arrested on Monday, August 7, a suspected member of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighter (BIFF) tagged in the murder of a town police chief and his security escort in Maguindanao del Sur in August 2022.
Police Brig. Gen. Allan Nobleza, Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) police director, said intelligence operatives arrested the suspect, Hamid Mling, in Barangay Poblacion, Ampatuan following a tip from civilian informants.
The suspect is facing murder charges in connection with the ambush-slaying of Police Lt. Reynaldo Samson, Ampatuan police chief, and his security escort, Police Corporal Salipudin Endab; and the wounding of Police Master Sgt. Renante Quinilayo and Police Corporals Rogelio dela Cuesta and Marc Clint Dayaday.
The victims, aboard a patrol car, were waylaid by a group of gunmen in Barangay Kapinpilan, Ampatuan while on their way to serve an arrest warrant against Kamir Kambal, a notorious criminal gang leader wanted for robbery and murder on August 30, 2022.
Mling yielded a .45-caliber pistol during his arrest. He is detained at the Ampatuan municipal police station.