Police: Explosive found in Cotabato bus terminal

Tension gripped passengers at a bus terminal in Kabacan town in North Cotabato after an improvised explosive device was found there Friday morning. A report by radio dzBB's Sam Nielsen said the IED was found at the terminal of the "Rural Transit" bus firm along Rizal Avenue in the town. Superintendent Joseph Semillano, municipal police chief, said a utility worker identified as one Manuel Yabut found the explosive at 7:45 p.m., and promptly reported the matter to the police. Chief Superintendent Gil Meneses, Region 12 police director, said the joint 61st Ordnance Team, backed by police and military teams, managed to disrupt and safely disable the explosive.

An initial investigation showed the IED was made from an 81-mm mortar, a battery, an electronic switch, and an improvised blasting cap. Police are not discounting extortion as the motive behind the incident. "We’re still looking at different angles of the story and extortion is one of the possible motives," Semillano said. Last October, an IED exploded inside a "Rural Transit" passenger bus in Matalam town in North Cotabato, killing at least 10 people and injuring 30 others. Other units of "Rural Bus" had been the subjects of similar attacks in the past. Police and military authorities cited the firm's history of having its buses bombed by the extortion group Al-Khobar. — with Malu Cadelina Manar/RSJ, GMANews.TV