KOTA KINABALU – Some 37 individuals have been arrested in a mangrove site next to a residential area in Beaufort, some 93km from here, of which eight men are allegedly linked to the Abu Sayyaf terror group.
Sabah police commissioner Datuk Hazani Ghazalie said the men, including eight women and 21 children, were arrested by the police in a special operation around 3am near Taman Sri Arjuna, in Beaufort.
“A check on the identity of all the individuals found that all the eight adult men are members of the Abu Sayyaf group and two of them are on the Philippines wanted list,” he said during a press conference here today.
Hazani added that the men were involved in the shooting with the Philippines marine security personnel at the Bud Bawis Complex in Panamao Sulu in 2011, 2018, 2019 and last November.
“They were also involved in several kidnappings involving foreigners,” said Hazani, adding that the operations involved the police, Eastern Sabah Security Command and Philippine security personnel.
The individuals are currently being investigated under the Organisational Act 1966 and will in remand until Wednesday.
He said the suspects are believed to have fled to Sabah following a mounted offensive by Philippine security forces in the south of that country.
Hazani believes the group has been in Sabah for over a year.
The two men on the wanted list are identified as Sansibar Besion and Muayyar Binda and according to Hazani, the police are currently identifying their local contacts.
Following the arrest, Hazani has ordered all district police in Sabah to conduct checks on nearby squatters to root out more fugitives. – The Vibes, May 10, 2021
