Cotabato City—Police on Friday night released the images of two suspects captured on closed-circuit television as they placed the second improvised bomb inside the South Seas Mall minutes before an initial bomb exploded on Dec. 31 as the city government offered half a million pesos in bounty for the arrest of the suspects.
The bombing left two people dead and injured 34 others.
At a news conference, Sr. Supt. Oliver Enmodias, head of the Special Investigation Task Group South Seas, presented to the media the two images of suspects—one about 25 to 30 years old and the other, about 50 to 60 years old.
Retired police Supt. Rolen Balquin, city civil security chief, said the local government of Cotabato has offered a P500,000 cash reward for anyone who can provide information leading to the arrest of the suspects.
“They were captured on CCTV placing a bag beside a Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office lotto outlet adjacent to the baggage counter at the second floor of South Seas Mall,” Enmodias said.
Bomb experts discovered the improvised bomb at the second floor while conducting clearing operations after the first blast that ripped through the main entrance of the mall along Don Rufino Alonzo St.
“They were clearly captured by CCTV and we have strong evidence they were behind the bombing,” Enmodias said.