Murder and frustrated murder raps have been filed against several suspects in the ambush on the convoy of Lanao del Sur Governor Mamintal Alonto Adiong Jr., Philippine National Police chief Gen. Rodolfo Azurin Jr. said Monday.
Azurin said the case is now considered “cleared.”
“On March 2, 2023, SITG ‘Gov Adiong’ filed criminal complaints for four counts of murder, three counts frustrated murder, and multiple attempted murder against several suspects before the Office of the Provincial Prosecutor, Samsodin Bedar, in Marawi City,” he said in a press briefing.
Azurin said Adiong was “already out of danger.”
Four of Adiong’s companions were killed when their convoy was ambushed on February 17 in Bukidnon.
Adiong’s staff, Ali Macapado Tabao, was also hurt in the attack.
Azurin reassured the public that the PNP is on top of the peace and safety situation as he downplayed the string of attacks on local executives as “isolated cases.”
He said the incidents that happened in the past weeks have no connection with each other and no pieces of evidence have been found to link them all.
The PNP chief also noted a decline of almost 20 percent in recorded crimes in the first two months of 2023 compared to the same period in 2022.
“Despite these recent shooting incidents involving elective government officials, in separate locations, there is no evidence that these incidents are connected with each other,” he said.
“From all indications, all these incidents stemmed from peculiar motivations of the assailants and does not reflect the whole peace and order situation in the country,” Azurin added.
