By JEFFREY G. DAMICOG
The Department of Justice (DoJ) started yesterday its preliminary investigation on the rebellion complaints filed against the widow of a slain terrorist leader.
Karen Aizha Hamidon, who was present during the hearing, is facing 296 count of inciting to rebellion filed against her allegedly for inviting foreigners and Filipinos ̵ through her Telegram and WhatsApp accounts ̵ to join the Maute terror group and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in the Marawi City battle.
During the hearing, the DoJ panel headed by Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Peter Ong gave Hamidon until Nov. 10 to file her counter-affidavit on the allegations against her.
Hamidon accused National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) agents of planting evidence against her.
“I strongly deny all of those alleged false accusations hurled against me,” she told reporters, insisting that she was not in any way involved in the attack in Marawi.
“They were the ones who implanted those evidences for me for their promotion,” Hamidon claimed.
Hamidon explained she is just a blogger and a Daiya who is an Islamic propagator using social media to spread the message of Islam.
“I only use social media as my avenue to spread the message of Islam for religious purposes, for maximum audiences,” she said.
She did not deny being the ex-wife of Singaporean Muhammad Shamin Mohammed Sidek as well as the widow of slain Ansar Khalifa Philippines (AKP) leader Mohammad Jaafar Maguid alias Tokboy who was killed in a shootout with police in Sarangani last January.
Sidek is detained in Singapore for his links to ISIS, while the AKP has been identified as the group behind the September 2016 Davao City night market bombing, which was done in cooperation with the Maute group; and the foiled bombing near the United States Embassy in Manila last December 2016.
However, NBI agent Joshua Raymundo said the bureau’s agents, through the social media accounts they have created, were able to view Hamidon’s posts as well as hear her audio files.
“If you hear the clip she is just declaring allegiance to ISIS,” he noted.
“There were audio recordings like this and she also made posts and statements on her Telegram accounts basically saying the same thing, identifying herself, giving her full name, declaring allegiance to ISIS,” he added.
Hamidon was arrested last Oct. 11 at her home in Taguig City by agents of the NBI’s Counter Terrorism Division (NBI-CTD) on the strength of a search warrant.
The NBI seized from her mobile phones, tablets, laptops other electronic devices she used in posting in her social media accounts her invitations for fighters to come to Marawi City.
One of her posts read: “The soldiers of Taghut are desperate to defeat the Muhajireen of the Islamic State of Marawi City…but Wallahi they won’t be successful. They won’t be able to defeat the force of Dawlah because Allah (Azza wa Jaal is on their side). That is why the Dawlah is once again inviting all our ikhwaalnil Muslimeen in all parts of the Philippines and around the world to support our Muhajireen of East Asia. Let us go to Marawi, in Mindanao to join the war against the Conquerors of the soldiers of Tawagheet.”