Maute sister nabbed near Iloilo port

A sister of the Maute brothers and two others were arrested near the Iloilo port on Sunday.

Capt. Leopoldo Panopio, commander of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) in Northern Mindanao, said the Maute sister was arrested while on board 2GO's MV St. Therese of the Child Jesus near the port of Iloilo.

Panopio told dzBB that coast guard personnel spotted the Maute sister, whose name the official has declined to disclose, at the port of Cagayan de Oro City on Saturday night.

"Pagpasok sa pier ng Northern Mindanao sa CDO, medyo hindi nakuha ang pagkakakilanlan dahil hindi kawangis ng larawan [sa listahan ng wanted na Maute group members)," the PCG official said.

Panopio said that after confirming the Maute sister's identity on Saturday morning, he and his men rushed to Iloilo province to intercept the 2GO vessel.

"Bago makadaong sa pantalan ay sinalubong na namin para makuha," he added.

The Maute sister was arrested at past 3 p.m.

He said the woman confirmed that she was the wanted Maute sister. He said the suspect used fake identities at the Cagayan de Oro City port.

Panopio said two companions of the Maute sister were also arrested.

Radio dzBB's Rojimar Sucaldito reported that one of the two companions of the Maute sister had an amputated leg, who was later identified as a certain Miks Jadid Romato.

Romato was also a wanted Maute group member.

Sucaldito said authorities have yet to determine if Romato recently had his leg amputated and if his leg was injured in Marawi City, where the military is fighting hundreds of members of the Maute group.

The parents of Maute group leaders Omarkhayam and Abdullah had also been arrested by the authorities.

On Thursday, security forces also arrested Mohammad Noaim Maute alias Abu Jadid in Cagayan de Oro City.

The military said Abu Jadid had joined the Maute group in the Marawi City attack, but was able to slip out of the city by disguising as a fleeing resident.

Brothers Omarkhayam and Abdullah are the known leaders of the ISIS-inspired Maute group, which originated from Lanao del Sur.

The military had said that they are verifying information that Omarkhayam and another brother named Madie were among the Maute group members who have been killed in the ongoing conflict in Marawi City.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines said a total of 242 Maute group members have been killed in Marawi City.

Twenty-six civilians and 59 soldiers and policemen have also been killed in the conflict, which is now on its fourth week.

The conflict started with the Maute group's attack in Marawi City on May 23, which prompted President Rodrigo Duterte to place Mindanao under martial law. —ALG, GMA News