COTABATO CITY – After months of covert operations, agents of the National Bureau of Investigation in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (NBI-BARMM) on Thursday arrested a suspected bomber linked to Mindanao bus bombings and bus burning in 2021.
NBI-BARMM Director Jonathan Balite identified the suspect as Lutre Aman Bangcailat, 35, who was arrested in his hideout in Barangay Rosary Heights 11 here at about 11 a.m.
Bangcailat, a resident of Pikit in North Cotabato, is allegedly a member of the Dawlah Islamiyah (DI) Hassan Group, which operates in the provinces of Maguindanao and North Cotabato.
Salahuddin Hassan, the leader of the DI Hassan Group, was killed in a military operation years ago.
“Bangcailat was involved in the bombing of the Yellow Bus unit in Tulunan, North Cotabato that left a roadside fruit vendor dead in January 2021,” Balite said in a press conference here.
The suspect has a warrant for destructive arson issued by Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 16 in Kabacan town and another for murder and multiple frustrated murders issued by RTC Branch 23 in Kidapawan.
Balite said the arrest of Bangcailat resulted from the coordination and cooperation of his office with the National Intelligence Agency, the Bangsamoro police, the Mindanao Area Police Intelligence Office, and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency. (PNA)