GOVERNMENT forces yesterday presented to
media alleged Indonesian bomber Mohamad Baehaqi, 26, alias Latif,
Salman, and Tatoh, who was arrested last Sunday in Banaybanay,
Davao Oriental with his contacts Cabiza Generoso and Mohar Abais
Generoso.
Baehaqi is reportedly affiliated with the
Southeast Asian regional terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah and
involved in a number of bombings. He is wanted for multiple
murder and multiple frustrated murder.
Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon
said Baehagi was assembling a bomb when arrested by elements of
the Army's 10th Infantry Division, intelligence operatives of
the Army, the Joint Special Operations Group in coordination
with the Philippine National Police.
Esperon, however, said that so far, they have
not established through tactical interrogation if Baehaqi is
involved in the alleged plot by the terrorists to assassinate
President Arroyo.
Baehaqi and his cohorts yielded among other
things, three guns, two cellphones, ammunition, P4,500 in cash,
blasting caps, explosives, detonating cords, remote detonating
devices, bomb-making diagram with notes in Bahasa, batteries,
SIM cards, a laptop computer and flash drives.
Esperon said they are looking into Baehaqi's
laptop to see if the group has scheduled any bombing. He also
said they anticipate retaliatory attacks due to Baehagi's
arrest.
Esperon said Baehaqi was involved in the
March 27, 2006 Jolo-Sulu Cooperative bombing that left nine
people dead and the Makilala-General Santos-Cotabato tri-bombing
in October 2006 that resulted in the death of over a dozen
people and wounded scores of others.
"We all know that this is one less terrorist,
a JI leader no less and his arrest is a big blow to the
terrorists and this will further frustrate whatever plans they
have," he said.
Esperon said Baehaqi has been in the country
since September 2003, had admitted joining Dulmatin, Patek and
Marwan and was serving as JI liaison in Central and Southern
Mindanao at the time of his capture. He said intelligence
operatives tracked Baehaqi after he reportedly went to Sulu to
meet with Dulmatin. "He has been to Jolo, and our operatives
took it from there, from Jolo, they tried their best to track
him and operate against him when he reached Davao Oriental," he
said.
Esperon said Baehaqi, who underwent training in Kararaw
complex in Lanao, is one of at least 30 JI operatives in the
country. He is in the AFP order of battle but not in the wanted
poster because the AFP did not have a photograph of him. -
Victor Reyes
