Batasan blast 'solved,' search for mastermind on - NCRPO

With the killing of three suspected Abu Sayyaf members and the capture of three others in a Quezon City raid, the Metro Manila police deemed Tuesday night's Batasan Pambansa complex blast a "closed" case. Director Geary Barias, chief of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO), said Friday the recovery of receipts, vehicle registration forms and deeds of sale show the Abu Sayyaf was involved in the Batasan incident. "Yes, nalutas na. Kailangan natin malaman ang participation ng anim, kung sino ang triggerman (Yes, the case is solved. We are now in the process of determining the participation of the six people in the Payatas encounter)," Barias said on dzBB radio, when asked if he considered the case closed. He said lawmen are also interrogating the three arrested people on the identity of the mastermind in the operation, and if they had any accomplices. Based on what information the three would provide, he said the police will launch appropriate follow-up operations. "If the three give us information, we will launch follow-up operations," he said in Filipino. Barias said investigators are certain that the six were involved in Tuesday night's blast, which killed Basilan Rep. Wahab Akbar and three others. Authorities had previously expressed doubts that the Batasan incident was linked to terrorism, saying only deceased Basilan Rep. Wahab Akbar appeared to be the lone target. The alleged Abu Sayyaf bandits in the Payatas incident were killed after the police's Special Action Force (SAF), Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) and the Army Intelligence Service Group stormed an alleged "safe house" at about 4 p.m. Thursday. The fatalities were identified as Redwan Idaman, his wife Saing and Abu Jandal alias Bong. Women are not allowed in the Al-Qaeda-linked bandit group. Three people – Khaidar Awnal, Ikram Indama and Adham Kusain – were arrested in the same operation and were still reportedly being interrogated. PNP officials said the clash broke out when lawmen were trying to serve a warrant for kidnapping and serious illegal detention to Abu Jandal, an alleged bandit leader. Investigation showed TNT-powered explosives were attached to a plate-less motorcycle parked near the Batasan south wing. A motorcycle part recovered from the blast site bore damaged bar code markings, which the police asked Honda Motorcycles to examine. Probers said the bomb was likely remotely detonated through a cell phone. Barias said in an interview on dzEC radio Thursday that the "triggerman" was likely near the blast site to detonate the explosives once their "target" was in sight. President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo had appealed to the public to desist from speculating on the Batasan blast since this might allegedly cast fear in the business community. - GMANews.TV