PRECAUTIONARY measures are now in place to ensure the security of the public after the arrest of a suspected supporter of the Maute terror group, an official said Wednesday.
Nasip Ibrahim was arrested Monday night and presented to reporters on Tuesday together with the firearms, ammunition and illegal substance found in his possession at the Salam Compound in Culiat village in Quezon City.
”After the arrest of Ibrahim, we will take the necessary precautionary measures to ensure the security of the public not just in Metro Manila but in other areas,” PNP spokesman Dionardo Carlos told reporters in Camp Crame.
Carlos made his statement even as Metro Manila Police Office Chief Oscar Albayalde confirmed the existence of members of the Islamic State-inspired Maute group in Metro Manila.
Albayalde made the confirmation after Col. Edgardo Arevalo, head of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ Public Affairs Office, brushed aside reports that the Maute group had a presence in Metro Manila.
He said their intelligence reports showed that the group had yet to spread outside its stronghold in Lanao del Sur.
But Albayalde believed otherwise.
“The successive arrest we made, the recovery of improvised explosive devices and firearms for the past months are substantial proof on the existence of threat groups here in Metro Manila,” Albayalde said in a statement.
Ibrahim was the alleged driver of the Toyota Revo that was used to transport the improvised explosive device from the Rizal Park to the area near the United States Embassy on Roxas Boulevard.
The IED was recovered near the United States Embassy in Manila in November last year. It was supposed to be used in a bombing attempt at the Luneta. With PNA