Two attacks carried out near the western Bago Region town of Pyay on Monday left a retired police inspector and two soldiers dead and several others injured, according to local sources.
Soe Thet Aung, 40, was shot dead as he and an active duty police officer were leaving the police station in Sin Mee Swea, a village in Thegon Township some 30km southeast of Pyay, on a motorcycle at around 7am, a resident told Myanmar Now.
“The retired officer died on the spot, but the other one is receiving treatment at the hospital. He was just grazed on his back,” said the local, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The injured officer was identified as Soe Thet Aung’s brother-in-law, Kyaw Kyaw. Both men were suspected of informing on resistance forces operating in the area.
The Paungde Township People’s Defence Force (PDF) claimed responsibility for the attack.
According to another local, the military has tightened security around Sin Mee Swea and the town of Thegon since the attack.
“They’ll arrest some random person and pin this on them if they can’t catch the actual perpetrators. That’s why people around here need to be on high alert right now,” said the local.
In April, a police private named Zayar Aung was captured alive in Thegon Township, but was later shot dead after he tried to resist his captors, according to a PDF statement released at the time.
Also on Monday, resistance forces attacked junta soldiers stationed between the villages of Let Pan Khon and Ma Eu Kwin in Paungde Township, according to a PDF statement.
Two soldiers were killed and another four were injured, the statement claimed. Uniforms and ammunition were also seized from the junta camp, the statement added.
The area where the attack took place is about 80km south of Pyay on the eastern bank of the Ayeyarwady River.
Anti-junta activities have increased in Bago Region since late last year, especially in the east, where several townships are regarded as Karen National Union territory.
While the eastern part of Bago Region is mountainous, the west is part of Myanmar’s flat, arid heartland. Pyay, a major hub connecting Upper and Lower Myanmar, is also regarded as the gateway to the Rakhine Yoma mountain range to the west.
