74-year old rebel nabbed by police

A septuagenarian who had been wanted by police authorities for more than 18 years was finally arrested by police operatives on Tuesday morning, Nov. 17, when he went back to his residence in Purok 1, Barangay Batbat in Guinobatan, Albay.

Guinobatan police chief Domingo Tapel Jr., said that the arrested suspect was Ronaldo Ogama,74, alias Ka Leo, who ranked No. 4 in the police’s regional roster of the most wanted person by Bicol police.

Tapel said that Ogama has a P2.2-million reward on his head based on Memorandum Order 10-2009 issued by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) in Bicol in 2009.

Ogama, a member of the New People’s Army (NPA) operating in Bicol region, was charged with multiple murder and frustrated murder by government authorities after he and his armed group were identified by witnesses to have carried out assassinations of anti-communist civilians as early as 2000.

The arrest warrants of Ogama were issued by: Judge Aurora Binamira-Parcia of the Municipal Tria Court (MTC) in Pioduran, Albay for multiple murder with frustrated murder on March 18,2002; Judge Edwin Maalat of Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 13 in Ligao City for multiple murder with frustrated murder last April 28,2003; and Judge Elmer Lanuzo of RTC Branch 6 in Legazpi City for frustrated homicide last March 11, 2019.

Tapel said that police operatives laid out massive surveillance activities against Ogama since September last year that resulted to his arrest at around 6:30 AM on Nov. 17.

“Our troops had really exerted extra surveillance efforts to arrest the suspect who had been wanted already as early as 2002,” Tapel said.

He said Ogama, accompanied by his wife, did not resist arrest.

Tapel said the civilian informants that led to the arrest of the suspect would receive the reward money.