Troops arrest Abu Sayyaf member in Zamboanga City

From the Philippine News Agency (Dec 9): Troops arrest Abu Sayyaf member in Zamboanga City

Police here announced on Friday the arrest of an Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) member involved in a raid of a plantation in Basilan province 15 years ago.

Chief Supt. Billy Beltran, Police Regional Office-9 (PRO-9) director, identified the arrested suspect as Ahmad Adil, who carries the aliases of Abu Umbra and Abdulrakman Zacaria.

Beltran said joint police and military operatives have arrested Adil around 12:20 p.m. Thursday in Barangay Mampang, sitauted some six kilometers east of this city.

Beltran said Adil has standing warrant of arrest for the crime of kidnapping and serious illegal detention for his alleged involvement in the raid of the Golden Harvest Plantation in June 2001 in Barangay Tairan, Lantawan, Basilan province.

During the raid, the Abu Sayyaf bandits beheaded nine of the 30 plantation workers they seized and shot to death another one.

The rest of the workers were either rescued or have escaped at the height of military pursuit operations launched against the bandit group.

Beltran said Adil was detained prior to his turnover to court authorities.

Adil’s arrest came after Mayor Maria Isabelle Climaco-Salazar has ordered the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office to enforce safety and security augmentation plan for the locality.

“My instruction always is to strengthen and tighten security in response to threats of terrorism, extremism and fundamentalism,” the mayor said.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=947231