THREE persons, including one known only by his alias “Kamah”, are being sought by police in the aftermath of the recent twin bomb attacks at a church in Jolo, Sulu that killed 21 people and wounded 112 others.
The latest fatality was a civilian who died Monday afternoon in a hospital in Zamboanga, according to Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Oscar Albayalde.
The death toll could still rise following the discovery of dismembered parts found underneath the rubble.
“We are still identifying at least two [victims]. There were dismembered parts that our men on the ground have discovered,” Albayalde said in a text message.
Kamah and two others were caught on closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras near the Jolo Cathedral where the bombs were detonated one after the other.
Albayalde said Kamah, wearing a blue green jacket, was seen handing something to his companion who was sporting a cap and a bag before the first blast occurred.
In another footage, Kamah was seen successfully passing what he intended to pass to his companion.
Albayalde said they have yet to establish whether what Kamah was trying to pass to his companion.
“Our EOD [Explosive Ordnance Division] believes the bombs were electronically-detonated so we have to determine whether it was the cellphone that he was giving to his companions,” Albayalde noted.
Following the blast, people started to run away, but Kamah ran in an opposite direction.
Albayalde said that Kamah belongs to the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) sub-group Ajang-Ajang, earlier tagged by the military as the one behind the twin explosions last Sunday.
“Ajang-Ajang is no different to Abu Sayyaf Group. The ASG is using younger fighters to carry out offensive attacks. The members of Ajang-Ajang are either the orphans of the ASG or their relatives,” Albayalde said in a television interview yesterday.
Radio station DZMM said Kamah is a brother of slain ASG leader Surakah Ingog, but the claim could not be independently confirmed.
“This group [Ajang-Ajang] is originally from Sulu, that is where their lair is. We only know his alias but the investigators said he is known in the community because he lives there,” Albayalde added.
He also appealed to residents of Jolo to inform the authorities about the real identity of Kamah and his two other companions.
“They are considered persons-of-interest because we’re trying to establish here whether it’s only a coincidence that they were near the church when this incident happened or they have something to do with it,” Albayalde explained.
Police have yet to establish the motive behind the attack but Albayalde said they couldn’t see any link between the incident and the recently-held Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL), which seeks to establish a new Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
However, Albayalde said one thing is for sure now – that the Jolo Cathedral blast was an “act of terror.”
“We see it as a plain act of terror. We couldn’t see anything that would link this incident to the plebiscite,” he said. (Martin Sadongdong)
