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Davao City blast suspects caught in Cotabato City
 [Business World Online] Philippine defense secretary Lorenza presented on Friday three terror suspects in connection with the September 2 bombing of the Davao City night market. The suspects were arrested by security forces on Tuesday at a checkpoint in Cotabato City.The suspects are TJ Tagadaya P. Macabalang (also known as Abutufail or Triggerman), Wendel A. Facturan (a.k.a. Muhaimin or Bomb Courier), and Musali U. Mustapha (a.k.a. Abu Hurayrah or Documenter), and they are said to be members of what is called the Maute Group. An initial investigation found that Macabalang detonated the bomb that was placed in position by Facturan where Mustapha "documented" the blast and the people's reaction with his mobile phone. Two videos were presented to the media. The first video was the incident as recorded, and the second showed Facturan, holding a rifle before a Daesh flag. Lt. General Eduardo Ano said, "There are indications that the Maute Group is trying to align themselves with ISIS as seen in the recorded video. We have also established their link with the Abu Sayyaf as they revealed their intention to disrupt he government's massive military operations in Sulu. Secretary Lorenza said, "The Maute group's plan to bomb Davao City was conceived more or less two weeks before the actual incident. Accordingly, the plan was conceptualized to disrupt and divert the government’s massive military operations in Sulu that started in July 2016 and in Central Mindanao that started in August 2016. "Moreover, the attack was conducted in retaliation for the heavy casualties suffered by the terror group in Butig, Lanao del Sur. The operations in August 2016 also resulted in the capture of eight Maute members in a checkpoint on August 22. The arrested members later bolted out of prison on August 27." A follow-up operation led to the arrest of Macabalang's father, Teng Macabalang, who had both high-powered and short firearms, ammunitions, and IED materials. Posted by: ryuge 2016-10-08 |
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