Supt. William Senoron, Sagay police chief, yesterday said the New People's Army may not be involved in the raid and strafing of a marine sanctuary outpost in Sagay City , Negros Occidental, which had caused injuries to two Bantay Dagat members.

Senoron said the mode of operations is not likely to be that of the NPA, and the armed group behind it may have only name-dropped the rebel group.

About 15 armed men claiming to be NPA members raided and strafed the Maca Reef marine outpost, 13 kilometers away from the shoreline of Brgy. Old. Sagay City , on Dec. 28, causing injuries to unarmed Bantay Dagat members Lito Villaflor and Roger Bulahan.

Senoron said they suspect these men are those affected by the intensified anti-illegal fishing campaign of the Sagay Marine Reserve.

Police investigations show the armed group were looking for firearms and two Bantay Dagat members identified only through their first names as Mario and Rene, who are always in the forefront in the arrest and filing of cases against persons arrested for illegal fishing.

Senoron said they want to unmask the identities and their motive those behind the attack of the marine sanctuary outpost.

Police investigations also showed that two fishing boats used by the armed suspects in the attack, which could accommodate six persons each, may have come from northern Negros .

An environmentalist group has offered a P200,000 reward for anybody who can provide information leading to the identification and arrest of the suspects, police said.

A background check conducted by the Sagay police on Rene and Mario showed that both are low-profile personalities, and not abusive.

The Sagay Marine Reserve Protected Area Management Board, which has denounced what it calls a “ruthless act”, said the incident will not in any affect their mission.

Senoron said there was an increase in the number of persons arrested for illegal fishing within the 32,000-hectare Sagay Marine Reserve last year, compared to 2006, citing SMR records

SMR was established through the efforts of then Representative, and now Sagay City Mayor Alfredo Maranon Jr.*GPB

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