Manila, Philippines: Police detain suspect in 2005 foiled car bomb attack

Police detain suspect in 2005 foiled car bomb attack


An Islamic militant accused of plotting a foiled 2005 bomb attack has been detained in the Philippines, police said Thursday.
Ricardo Ayeras, described by the authorities as a founding member of the Rajah Solaiman Movement, was arrested in a police raid in his home in Man­daluyong City on Sunday, police said.
The arrest came as Asean foreign ministers held talks at the Philippine International Convention Center. The police did not say, however, if Ayeras was plotting to disrupt the ministers’ meeting.
The Rajah Solaiman is closely allied to the Abu Sayyaf, a militant Islamic group with alleged ties to al-Qaeda that is blamed for the worst terrorist attacks in the country.
Police said the group was made up of Christians who had converted to Islam, and had been blamed for a number of bombings in the country.
They said Ayeras, who goes by the name Abdul Kareem Ayeras, had been charged with rebellion over a foiled bomb attack in Manila in 2005.
A lower court in Manila issued an arrest warrant last month and recommended the suspect should not be granted bail.
Police said Ayeras and another RSM member, Pio de Vera, were supposed to supply the explosives for a car bomb to be used in the 2005 attack. Ayeras was supposed to drive the car.
Reynante Ayeras, Ricardo’s 29-year-old brother, filed a complaint with the Mandaluyong police, saying his brother was forcibly taken from their home.
Reynante said a white van with license plate XAS-309 stopped in front of their house on Sunday afternoon. Four men with handguns got out and grabbed his brother, who was preparing a meal in the kitchen.
Ayeras had denied that he was a member of the RSM. He also said he had never met RSM leader Hilarion Santos, as alleged by the police. Ayeras, who was presented to the media in Muslim clothing, said he is a Catholic and that he was tortured into confession when he was arrested by the PNP in January this year.
--AFP and Francis Earl A. Cueto