Central Mindanao regional police chief Senior Superintendent Bartolome Baluyot identified the two suspects as Bobby Sabilo, 23, and Mulikin Adam Ambi, 40. They were arrested in a raid on their supposed safehouse at Purok 4 Extension, Lanton in Barangay Apopong around 1 a.m. yesterday.
Police officials, however, did not rule out the involvement of other groups in the bombings that left 14 people dead. The MILF’s Eid Kabalu also denied his group’s involvement in the blasts.
Baluyot said witnesses identified the two suspects as the men who left a bag in a tricycle that was parked in front of the GenSan FitMart shopping mall before 3 p.m. last Sunday.
The bag is believed to have contained a bomb that exploded 15 minutes later.
Baluyot said the two suspects were sighted at their safehouse with several armed men, believed to have been led by a certain Puntuan, who escaped the police dragnet.
Police seized a 20-gauge shotgun, a caliber .38 revolver and a fragmentation grenade from the two.
Baluyot had earlier theorized that an underground federalist group was responsible for the bombing but he said yesterday that the MILF was only using the name of the group to divert the police investigation.
President Arroyo directed the Department of Justice to "swiftly prosecute" all apprehended suspects as warranted and to "recommend no bail" to the court where the cases will be filed.
The bombing has been condemned by the Philippine Islamic Council.
"This is a black day for peace advocacy in the country and the Philippine Islamic Council strongly condemns such barbaric, cowardly and satanic acts," said the council’s secretary general Taha Basman.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Leandro Mendoza and Director Nestorio Gualberto, chief of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), flew to General Santos to supervise the ongoing investigation.
The MILF, which is holding peace talks with the government, has been tagged in several bombing incidents in Mindanao but its leadership has denied involvement.
The President called on the MILF to help the government capture the people responsible for the bombing as part of its peace talks with the government. - Jaime Laude, Marichu Villanueva, Mike Frialde