MANILA, Philippines—An alleged founding member of the Abu Sayyaf kidnap gang has been arrested by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and is set to be extradited to the United States to face charges for the 1993 kidnapping of an American missionary in Pangutaran, Sulu.
Lawyer Abdul Basir Latip was taken into custody by NBI agents as soon as he arrived from Jakarta, Indonesia, at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2 Wednesday.
Latip was arrested by Indonesian authorities last Nov. 21 and turned over to the Philippine Embassy in Jakarta, which sent him back to the Philippines.
Ricardo Diaz, the chief of the NBI’s counterterrorism unit (CTU) and the bureau spokesperson, said the US government has offered a $1.5-million reward for Latip’s capture following his indictment for the kidnapping of Charles Walton at the US District Court for the District of Columbia.
Latip was also arrested for using a different name, Rahim Malik Suwaib, on his passport, Diaz said.
Red notice
Apart from a warrant for his arrest, the fugitive also has a “red notice” issued against him by the International Police Organization (Interpol).
A red notice is a listing of wanted persons that the Interpol circulates to member countries. It means that foreign police agencies are asked to be on the lookout for such people, Diaz explained.
Last Nov. 21, Latip was arrested while on a stopover in Jakarta on his way back to the Philippines based on an Interpol red notice. He was detained for several days before being turned over to the Philippine Embassy.
A background investigation conducted on him by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation showed Latip to be a well-known character in Basilan and Zamboanga.
It showed that Latip was already an active member of the Abu Sayyaf, which has links to Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida international terror network, from the group’s inception. He was also said to be a member of the separatist Moro National Liberation Front and a student leader in 1989.
Finance officer
It said he was not a fighter but a finance officer who acted as a conduit for al-Qaida member Muhamad Jamal Khalifa to facilitate the transfer of Saudi funds to the Abu Sayyaf and other groups in Mindanao.
He also allegedly served as the Abu Sayyaf spokesperson during the Walton kidnapping. He was identified when he appeared on television. He was masked but was identifiable to those who knew him because of a birthmark in the right temple.
In an interview with reporters, Latip denied that he was a member of the Abu Sayyaf or that he was involved in the kidnapping of Walton.
“I was not a member of the ASG [the Abu Sayyaf] but I am a close friend of Abdurajak Janjalani [the group’s late founder]. I used another name [Rahim Malik Suwaib] in my passport because I was told that the US authorities placed a $1.5 million reward for my capture. I also learned that I was in the Interpol red notice [list],” he said.
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