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Terror Suspect Escapes Philippine Jail
An Indonesian man who allegedly confessed to involvement in bombings in Manila that killed 22 people escaped from jail early Monday, police said. Fathur Rohman Al-Ghozi, a reputed leader of Southeast Asian terror group Jemaah Islamiyah, escaped from police intelligence custody along with two other Filipino suspected Muslim extremists, national Police Chief Hermogenes Ebdane said. The escape took place before dawn from the heavily secured intelligence command building at Camp Crame, the national police headquarters in Manila. Ebdane said police guarding the three extremists were being investigated. Shit. Sounds like some of Al-Ghoziâs friends paid some âbailâ The escape was a serious blow to Philippines efforts to battle terrorism and was particularly embarrassing because Australian Prime Minister John Howard was in Manila to provide counterterrorism assistance. Police chief Supt. Jesus Verzosa, who heads the national police intelligence group which had custody of Al-Ghozi, has offered to resign, according to Ebdane, who did not say if he had accepted. Ebdane identified the other escapees as Abdul Edris and Meram Abante. Police say Al-Ghozi has confessed involvement in the five Dec. 30, 2000, bombings in Manila. His confessions have been used to file charges against alleged co-conspirators, including Saifullah Yunos, who pleaded guilty to helping plan the attacks. Posted by: Paul Moloney 2003-07-14 |
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