COTABATO CITY – The 601st Infantry Brigade recovered Sunday assorted high-powered firearms abandoned in Barangay Mao, Datu Abdullah Sangki, Maguindanao del Sur.
Lt. Col. Roden Orbon, speaking for the 6th Infantry Division, quoted a report from the 601st Infantry Brigade that soldiers responded immediately to civilian reports about the presence of heavily armed individuals in Barangay Mao.
“The timely information provided by civilians to the military helped prevent violence in Datu Abdullah Sangki,” he said.
Major Gen. Donald Gumiran, commander of the 6th ID, also lauded the civilians for alerting authorities about the armed men in the barangay that could have disrupted Monday's national and local polls.
“When the government forces, backed by armored personnel carriers, arrived, the gunmen were already gone, but soldiers discovered guns and ammunition abandoned in the village at about 8 a.m.,” he said.
The soldiers found one M60 machine gun, five M16 rifles, ammunition, and other war materiel.
The 6th ID has deployed over 5,000 soldiers across its area of responsibility in Central Mindanao, which includes the provinces of Maguindanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Norte, and parts of North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, South Cotabato, and Sarangani.