The Philippine Marines has given a hero’s welcome to another fallen Marine officer who was killed by a landmine Wednesday while leading his team during a patrol in Patikul, Sulu.

Philippine Marine Corps Commandant, Maj. Gen. Juanco Sabban, led officers and enlisted personnel in paying their last respects to 2Lt. Dulan Cordero, whose remains arrived at the Marine headquarters in Taguig City Friday.

Aside from the hero’s welcome, Cordero was also awarded the Posthumous Wounded Medal. Cordero died after he was hit by a landmine on October 21 at about 9 a.m., as he and elements of the Marine Battalion Landing Team 5 (MBT5) were conducting patrol at the vicinity of barangay Upper Tugas, Patikul, Sulu.

Navy spokesman, Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo said an IED was planted at a cutoff water pipe in the area and when the team passed by the vicinity to check the water pipe, the bomb went off resulting in the death of the Marine officer. An enlisted Marine personnel was also wounded.

Cordero, 27, graduated from the Philippine Military Academy (PMPA) in 2006 and was assigned to Sulu in March 2007 after completing his training at the Marine Base Ternate. A former corps commander of his ROTC unit in Tacloban City, Cordero excelled in judo during his cadet days and was a company commander in the academy.

“His leadership trait always stood out. Once he set a goal, he was determined to achieve it,” said 2Lt. Rafael Naranjo, a former company-mate at the PMA and also a Marine officer now assigned in Sulu.

Naranjo added that being competitive and a fighter was deeply ingrained in Cordero’s character.

According to a former roommate, Cordero, who is the eldest in a brood of three, was aware of the dangers facing the job did but this did not discourage him from joining the Marines.