Maguindanao blast suspect surrenders

CAMP SIONGCO, Maguindanao — One of the two suspects in the Jan. 4 bombing of a basketball game in Parang, Maguindanao which left 22 people dead and 71 others wounded, turned himself in to a mayor the other day.

But the suspect, Suharto Ahmad, denied having any hand in the attack.

Brig. Gen. Agustin Dema-ala, commander of the Army’s 301st Infantry Brigade based in Tacurong City, said Ahmad, tagged by the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao police as one of the two blast suspects, is now under the custody of Mayor Datu Toto Mangudadatu of Buluan town.

Ahmad, Dema-ala said, even presented his motorcycle to the military to belie earlier reports that he owned the bomb-laden motorcycle used in the bombing, the worst ever in the history of the 50-year-old Parang town.

Dema-ala said he has advised Mangudadatu to present Ahmad to the court where he now faces criminal charges for the bombing.

Soldiers and policemen were still tracking down a Parang councilor, Abdul Katab, who has been tagged as the brains behind the attack.