TOWN HALL TURNS INTO WAR ZONE

Taguig's municipal hall compound turned into a virtual battle zone when two
groups of opposing policemen engaged in a 30-minute firefight over two
alleged Muslim drug traffickers past midnight yesterday.

No one was reported hurt in the clash but it left many bullet holes in the
newly renovated municipal hall where a platoon of heavily armed Regional
Special Action Unit (RSAU) of the National Capital Region Police Office
holed up.

The municipal building is at the center of the compound, with the one-story
Taguig police headquarters - the target of RSAU policemen - on the right
side.

Insp. Ricardo Luciano of the Taguig police said it was the RSAU policemen
who started the gun battle.

Two hours before the shooting, he said a certain PO1 Ladislao Nuguib and an
RSAU civilian employee identified as Nazzer Mohammed, arrived at the office
of the Anti-Illegal Drugs-Special Operations Sub-Task Force (AID-SOSTF).

The two reportedly negotiated for the release of suspected drug pushers
Kahar Goldy, and Benjamin Usmar, who were arrested in a buy-bust operation
early that evening.

Nuguib and Mohammed went to the extent of offering the policemen P18,000 in
bribe money but were turned down.

A platoon of RSAU policemen came rushing in the compound past midnight and
quickly occupied positions in front of the police headquarters.

Luciano said the gun battle ensued when the elite policemen opened fire with
automatic rifles.

Only 10 policemen were on duty at that time.

Only two were armed with M-16 Armalite rifles with the rest carrying only
with 9-mm pistols.

The arrival of Southern Police District chief Supt. Prospero Noble and
contingent of heavily armed policemen halted the firefight.

Noble berated the leader of the RSAU policemen, a certain Insp. Datu, and
ordered them to return immediately to their barracks at the NCRPO
headquarters at Camp Bagong Diwa in Bicutan.

Taguig police officials, on the other hand, said they would file charges
against their attackers.