It turned out that the supposed arrest of top Abu Sayyaf commander Radulan Sahiron last Saturday was a false alarm, and that the man whom Philippine National Police chief Director General Arturo Lomibao would have presented to President Arroyo at Malacañang yesterday was just a look-alike of the one-armed "Commander Putol."
Calling the mistake an "unintentional lapse," Lomibao said the look-alike of Sahiron was captured in Sulu by a special police intelligence unit under the command of Senior Superintendent Rodolfo "Boogie" Mendoza.
"We got one all right, but only a look-alike… we apologize for the unintentional lapse, all in days’ work, if we may add," he said.
Sahiron’s look-alike will be safely returned to his family, he added.
At a press conference at Camp Crame in Quezon City yesterday, PNP spokesman Chief Superintendent Leopoldo Bataoil said Lomibao was apologizing for the fiasco and assured the nation that the "government is utilizing all its assets to cripple the enemy," even one-armed ones.
"But the incident (lapse) highlighted key important elements in the government’s fight against terrorism," he quoted Lomibao’s statement.
"One, the war on terror is personal and passionate and two, the war on terror is continuing and sustained," he added.
Bataoil said Lomibao doubted that Sahiron had actually been arrested, and that he immediately flew to Dipolog City to check if the police got the right man.
With the help of broadcast journalist Arlyn de la Cruz, who had previously interviewed Sahiron, Lomibao was able to ascertain that it was not Commander Putol, but a "look-alike" who was in police custody, he added.
Bataoil failed to describe the look-alike of Sahiron and could not also say whether the arrested man also had a missing right arm.
At Malacañang, a day after Mrs. Arroyo announced the supposed arrest of Sahiron, the Palace retracted yesterday the President’s statement commending police authorities for the reported capture of Sahiron.
Mrs. Arroyo’s statement was released shortly before noon Saturday, when there was yet no verification if indeed it was Sahiron who had been captured in Sulu.
In an early morning radio interview, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said he has still no details about the reported capture of the one-armed Abu Sayyaf commander, even though Mrs. Arroyo had announced it the night before.
As reporters waited at the Palace, reports started filtering in that the police committed a mistake, and that it was not Sahiron who had been arrested.
When asked whether his office had received reports of the mistake, Bunye asked reporters to wait for a statement from Lomibao.
"We’re awaiting word from General Lomibao who has left for Zamboanga," he said.
At around 4:30 p.m., Bunye sent through text messaging to reporters Lomibao’s statement, and asked that Mrs. Arroyo’s statement be disregarded.
"General Lomibao’s statement is self-explanatory. This setback will not deter us from vigorously pursuing the fight against terrorism," Bunye said.
Quoting Lomibao, Bataoil said police intelligence agents headed by Mendoza, spent days and nights hunting down Sahiron, known for his alias "Commander Putol."
"We acknowledge this incident as a constant reminder that the enemy is still out there," Bataoil said, quoting Lomibao. "The fight against terrorism is a long, tedious and emotional battle."
Bataoil said the information about Sahiron’s arrest was relayed to Lomibao by intelligence agents of Mendoza, who has been in a "special operations unit" under the office of the PNP chief.
"It was General Lomibao, who reported to the President about the development in the operation," Bataoil told reporters.
Bataoil said Lomibao, doubting the information, immediately flew to Dipolog City to check the identity of the arrested suspect.
"General Lomibao brought with them broadcast journalist Arlene de la Cruz to help in identifying Sahiron," he said. "She had a close encounter with Sahiron as she interviewed him in the past."
The suspect supposed to be Sahiron was arrested by virtue of a warrant of arrest for 21 counts of kidnapping with serious illegal detention, he added.
In Zamboanga City, government agents in Sulu insisted that Sahiron is scot-free in the mountains of the island chain.
Local government sources said Sahiron would not travel to another place, especially in a non-Muslim area like Titay town in Zamboanga Sibugay province, where the wrong man was "captured" Saturday.
"In fact, words from the villagers in Indanan town disclosed that the old man (Sahiron) even attended and celebrated the Eid’l Fitr (end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan) somewhere in Indanan," a local official who asked not to be named said.
The official said Sahiron is not a typical Abu Sayyaf commander who would just leave his turf in Sulu without any reason at all.
"You see, the military has been running after him for many years, but Sahiron was not even heard to have gone to other areas in Sulu, except in Indanan or Patikul, his home ground," the official said.
Military and police sources started to doubt the reports that Sahiron had been arrested outside Sulu.
"We have not heard of any arrest in Sulu," a Marine officer said.
Yesterday, Lomibao flew to Dipolog City to supposedly check on the reported capture of Sahiron.
Lomibao returned to Metro Manila later.
Chief Superintendent Prospero Noble, Zamboanga Peninsula police commander, said Sahiron was supposed to have been captured in Barangay Kitabog in Titay town, Zamboanga Sibugay province about 4:30 p.m. Saturday by Regional Special Action Force troops and police intelligence agents.
Sahiron, known as "Commander Putol," was one of the alleged leaders of the abduction of 21 German, French, Finnish and South African tourists, and Malaysian and Filipino resort workers from a beach resort on the island of Sipadan off Sabah in 2000.
Most of the hostages were freed only after hefty ransoms were paid.
Sahiron’s forces in the island of Jolo were known for their willingness to kill their hostages, including captured soldiers, police officials said.
The government had offered a reward of as much as P5 million for information leading to the arrest of Sahiron.
Sahiron, along with Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khaddafy Janjalani and five other bandit leaders are wanted by the United States for the killing of Americans Martin Burnham and Guillermo Sobero.
The US government has offered a $5-million bounty for information leading to their arrest and conviction, and has placed the Abu Sayyaf on its list of terrorist organizations. — With reports from Paolo Romero, Roel Pareño