Col. Alexander Yapching, chief of the Army’s 104th Infantry Brigade, said combined elements of the 35th Infantry Battalion and the local police raided a safehouse in Barangay Samak, Talipao and captured Abubasar Mohamad.
Mohamad was tagged as among those who took part in the kidnapping of tourists in the Malaysian resort-island of Sipadan under the command of Galib Andang, alias Commander Robot. A high-powered firearm was seized from him.
In another raid in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi, another suspected Abu Sayyaf member was arrested but authorities refused to identify him pending the results of the investigation and follow-up operations against the suspect’s companion.