BIFF member admits selling firearms taken from slain SAF men

From GMA News (Feb 6): BIFF member admits selling firearms taken from slain SAF men

(Updated 10:43 p.m.) A member of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) has admitted that they took the firearms and some of the personal items of the 44 elite policemen killed in the infamous January 25 Mamasapano clash.

In a report on GMA News TV's Quick Response Team on Friday, the BIFF member, identified only as Kiram, said they sold most of the weapons and used the money to purchase more bullets for their operations.

"Sa amin lang, pito ang nabenta namin,” he said, adding that among the firearms seized from the fallen policemen were Bushmaster 150s, M203 grenade launchers, and M-60 machines guns.

But there was one weapon the BIFF did not sell. “'Yung Barrett. Sa totoo lang, hindi namin ibebenta 'yun, kasi mahalaga sa amin ang sniper,” Kiram said.

The slain policemen were Special Action Force commandos who swooped down on a remote village in Mamasapano on the wee hours of January 25 to serve arrest warrants on two terrorists, but figured in a clash with Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and BIFF combatants.

Kiram said aside from the weapons, they took the night vision goggles and uniforms of the dead SAF members.
The TV report said the SAF admitted having these firearms in their inventory, but could not verify if the team deployed to Mamasapano had them during the operation. Police officials have repeatedly appealed to the MILF, which has an existing peace agreement with the government, to return the weapons taken from the dead policemen.

After the "24 Oras" report was aired, BIFF spokesman Abu Misry Mama contacted GMA News to deny that "Kiram" is a member of the group. In a text message, and over the phone, Mama said that the source "had been paid by someone" to pretend to be a member of the BIFF.

Marwan

Kiram, meanwhile, admitted in the report that ever since the group was formed in 2008, they have been coddling Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir alias Marwan, the main target of the SAF operation.

He said not even a $5-million bounty from the US government can make them surrender Marwan, who is blamed for the 2002 Bali bombing.

"Mahalaga sa amin si Marwan dahil sa Islam, hindi namin kaya ituro ang kapatid namin sa Islam kaysa kakaunting salapi lang na makukuha namin," he said.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has confirmed that the DNA sample sent to them following the Mamapasanon clash was that of Marwan.

Philippine government officials have claimed that Marwan was killed in the operation.

But despite his admissions, Kiram denied they mutilated the fallen SAF commandos, noting that the policemen were killed by high-caliber weapons during the firefight.

“Hindi naman sa ganoon na namatay na ang tropa ng mga SAF ay binaril din namin. Hindi 'yun totoo! Natamaan sila sa gitna ng putukan. Kasi kami mayroon din kaming pinaglalaban na prinsipyo eh,” he said.

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/428463/news/nation/biff-member-admits-selling-firearms-taken-from-slain-saf-men