The discovery was made during a tactical interrogation of a suspected Malaysian terrorist arrested on Friday at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) while he was about to board a Kuwaiti Airlines plane bound for Kuwait via Bangkok, Thailand.
Investigation showed that some of the contacts in the Philippines given by the suspect, Azmi bin Salleh, 36, were on the International Police (Interpol)’s list of terrorists.
Immigration agents and airport police found in Bin Salleh’s possession 104 questionable passports and $57,250, purportedly payment for Saudi visas for his clients who want to join the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.
The investigators are looking at the possibility that Bin Salleh is a finance officer of the al-Qaeda network of terrorists led by Saudi-born dissident Osama bin Laden, principal suspect in the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.
Some of the Arab-sounding names found in Bin Salleh’s cellular phone were in the Interpol list of wanted terrorists.
Maj. Winnie Quidato of the Immigration security was still interrogating Bin Salleh regarding the names in his mobile phone to determine if the wanted terrorists are still in the Philippines.
Quidato said conflicting statements by Bin Salleh on his purpose for coming to Manila strengthened their suspicion that the Malaysian could be a member of a terrorist group out to undermine US interests in Southeast Asia.
Immigration records showed that Bin Salleh arrived in Manila last Tuesday with another Malaysian and a Thai identified as Asag Akong who reportedly managed to sneak out of the country on an early morning Philippine Airlines flight to Bangkok.
The other Malaysian, whose identity was temporarily withheld, is now the object of an alert order issued by Immigration Commissioner Andrea Domingo and Aviation Security Group chief Gen. Marcelo Ele.
On interrogation, Bin Salleh said he knew Bin Laden only through the newspapers and admitted the Saudi dissident was his idol. "There’s nothing wrong with that, right?" he said.
Ele said Bin Salleh was stopped from boarding his plane when security personnel manning an X-ray machine at the departure zone of the NAIA showed images of several travel documents bound with rubber bands.
A manual check of the Bin Salleh’s luggage revealed the 57 Malaysian passports, the money and the cellular phone.
Bin Salleh claimed he was working for a travel agency, but verification showed that the purported firm was non-existent.
US intelligence agents have sought clearance to interrogate Bin Salleh who was placed in the custody of the immigration bureau pending further investigation.
Meanwhile, Malaysian Ambassador Mohammad Taufik said Bin Salleh came to Manila to apply for visa at the Saudi Arabian Embassy for the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.
"It is not true that he is a terrorist. He is not linked with Osama bin Laden. He’s here to get visa for Haj," Taufik said.
He clarified that the money found in Bin Salleh’s possession was meant to pay for the visas of his clients joining the pilgrimage.
The envoy said Bin Salleh tried to secure the visas in Manila to make it appear that the applicants were from the Philippines.
In Kuala Lumpur, authorities said they will work closely with Philippine officials investigating Bin Salleh.
Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said police would work with their counterparts in Manila to determine if Bin Salleh was just a travel agent as he had claimed.