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What did Jolo cops take from slain Army intelligence officers' body, vehicle?

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ABS-CBN News

<h3>PH Army clarifies men in video soldiers, not cops</h3>MANILA (UPDATE) - A former Philippine military chief on Wednesday showed video footage in which policemen are seen after they killed four Army intelligence officers in Jolo town, Sulu on Monday.In a Facebook post by former Armed Forces chief-of-staff Gen. Ricardo Visaya, police officers are seen on CCTV footage checking the bodies of the soldiers they killed, including sifting through their vehicle, before a forensics team even arrived.<div><script src="https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&amp;version=v2.5" async="" type="text/javascript"></script></div><div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/bon.vicente.1/videos/10222167232231467/ " data-width="auto"> </div>One police officer grabbed something from one of the dead soldiers&#x27; body and handed it to his colleague. Another cop also entered the victims&#x27; SUV twice and took something out of the vehicle.Visaya lashed out at the violations of police officers in the crime scene.&quot;How could you serve and protect the people if you have policemen like them? Discipline eroded!!!&quot; he said.The former military chief lambasted the &quot;habitual violent incidents&quot; in the past where police officers have been caught covering up crime scenes. Visaya also called on the Philippine National Police leadership to &quot;stop covering up their abusive men.&quot;&quot;If you cannot instill discipline in your organization, it&#x27;s time for you to go!!!&quot; he said. &quot;Have delicadeza.&quot;In a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=2594868797428329&amp;id=1599210800327472">statement</a> released Thursday afternoon, the Philippine Army clafied that the men in the video were soldiers who responded to the scene after receiving reports regarding the shooting incident.Army Spokesperson Col. Ramon Zagala said they were able to confirm that the men seen in the video were soldiers.He also said there were no police personnel at the scene when the responding soldiers arrived. They also looked around because they were looking for survivors.&quot;There was no PNP personnel at the time the responding soldiers arrived. As a natural instinct, the soldiers went to the gunned vehicle to check for survivors. Their initial mission was to take down Mundi Sawadjaan, an Abu Sayyaf leader, when the unfortunate incident happened,&quot; Zagala explained.Zagala added that though there were lapses on the part of the responding soldiers, there was no intention of tampering with the crime scene.&quot;We admit our personnel committed some lapses but there were no intent of tampering with the crime scene. Their intent was to identify the victims, see if there are survivors and secure the special equipment on board the vehicle,&quot; he said. &quot;The person seen moving the body of one of the soldiers killed is actually Cpl. Asula’s brother who is also an Army operative. Understandably, he was distraught upon seeing his brother dead and so he put a pillow under his head and when he reached for the front door of the vehicle, his intention was to secure the personal belongings of his brother. The responding soldiers left the crime scene largely untouched,” he said.The four soldiers, all intelligence operatives of the Philippine Army, were tracking 2 suspected suicide bombers from the terrorist Abu Sayyaf group when their van was flagged down by police officers at a checkpoint. Philippine Army chief Lt. Gen. Gilbert Gapay earlier said even though the soldiers cooperated, they were still shot dead. He said the men were not armed. Police earlier claimed that the soldiers, who were not in uniform, sped past the checkpoint and drew their guns at the officers, prompting them to fire.Gapay denied this, calling the police&#x27;s claim as “fabricated, parang sine (like in the movies).” The National Bureau of Investigation is now looking into the incident, which Gapay has called &quot;rubout.&quot;--With reports from Chiara Zambrano, ABS-CBN News

A former Philippine military chief on Wednesday showed video footage in which policemen are seen after they killed four Army intelligence officers in Jolo town, Sulu on Monday.

A former Philippine military chief on Wednesday showed video footage in which policemen are seen after they killed four Army intelligence officers in Jolo town, Sulu on Monday.