Security tightened in Zamboanga after airport blast

Security was tightened in Zamboanga City on Friday, less than 12 hours after an explosion at the arrival area of the Zamboanga International Airport Thursday night, a local official said. Thursday's blast killed two people and injured 24 others, including Sulu Gov. Abdusakur Tan. [See: 2 dead in Zamboanga airport blast ahead of US envoy visit] "Dahil sa nangyari kagabi, raised ang alert sa siyudad ng Zamboanga. Yung police and military [are] very visible," (After the blast, alert levels have been raised in the city. Police and military forces are very visible) Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat said in an interview on dzBB radio. He said initial investigation showed that a man carrying explosives on his back may have been responsible for the attack. "Investigators have yet to find the triggering device. The bomb was placed at the back of the suspected bomber, probably inside a backpack," Lobregat said. The man carrying the explosives has been identified as Reynaldo Apelado, said Zamboanga City police chief Senior Superintendent Edwin de Ocampo, citing initial reports. Identification cards issued by the Social Security System and the Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative were found on the suspect’s body, which was badly mangled in the explosion, investigators said. “Pina-check natin sa homeowners association, mason ito. Wala siyang kamag-anak dito, mag-isa siya at nakatira sa bahay niya. Continuous ang investigation sa background ng taong ito (We checked with the local homeowners’ association. He is a mason and has no relatives in the city. We are checking his background)," he said in an interview on dzXL radio. De Ocampo said law enforcers have no closed-circuit television footage to aid their investigation, as the airport’s CCTV system has no recording function. “Di natin malalaman, tingin natin makikita natin pero di pwede mai-record, in place lang siya (We cannot use CCTV footage. We have cameras in place but they have no recording capability)," he said. Not a terrorist attack A report from QTV’s Balitanghali quoted police authorities as saying the bombing incident could not have been a terrorist attack, as there was no shrapnel in the wounds suffered by the victims. The police said the perpetrators could have loaded the explosive with shrapnel to injure more people if the motive was to terrorize the public, the news report said. Military spokesperson Brig. Gen. Jose Mabanta also ruled out suicide bombing in the incident. "The possibility of him [Apelado] being a suicide bomber is highly improbable but of course this still has to be further verified. From all angles, we look at it as almost impossible, highly improbable that the perpetrator is a suicide bomber," he said. De Ocampo said the bomber appeared to have a target in mind. Prior to the explosion, the suspect had positioned himself near the area where Gov. Tan would pass on the way out of the airport, according to the police, who also said there is a possibility the suspected bomber has a companion.
US Embassy aid The explosion prompted US Ambassador Harry Thomas Jr. to postpone his visit to Zamboanga City. Thomas was scheduled to visit a halfway house for victims of human trafficking and attend a tuberculosis project activity in the city Friday. Mayor Lobregat said the US Embassy has offered to help in the investigation of the incident. “Nagpapasalamat tayo sa US Embassy sa lahat na tulong na ibibigay nila (We thank the US Embassy for all the help it is offering)," he said. Lobregat added that he has convened the local Crisis Management Committee to look into the incident. Explosives experts and scene-of-the-crime operatives were still inspecting “ground zero" for leads, he said. It was early to tell if Gov. Tan's theory that he could be the target of the bombing is correct, the mayor said. “Di pa ito established (The theory that Tan was the target has not yet been established)," he said. He also denied reports that there were security lapses at the airport, saying the explosion occurred outside the airport premises. “Kung sa loob ng terminal masasabi natin may lapse, pero sa labas ito ng arrival area (If the explosion occurred inside the terminal I would say there was a security lapse. But this happened outside the arrival area)," Lobregat said. — with a report by Amita Legaspi, LBG/YA, GMANews.TV