Artist sketch of Cotabato bombing suspect out
abs-cbnNEWS.com | 07/10/2009 3:21 PM
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Police on Friday released the facial composite sketch of the man who supposedly planted the bomb that exploded near the Immaculate Conception Cathedral in Cotabato City on Sunday morning.
Officials of the Cotabato City police said the suspect is 5'4" to 5'7" in height, medium built and more or less 30 years of age.
They said the suspect's facial composite sketch was based on the description of several witnesses and the footage from a CCTV camera, which was installed at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas regional office near the cathedral.
The footage showed the suspect, who was wearing a black collared T-shirt and maong pants, bending over in front of the LC Lechon House and leaving something. While walking away from the store, the man pulled out a cellular phone from his pant's left pocket.
Police said the CCTV camera's time counter was at 8:34 a.m. when the suspect walked past it and disappeared. A few minutes later, the bomb went off, killing five people, including Ruby Ramirez, a vendor at the lechon house.
Police said the suspect bought food from the lechon house and could have left without paying. Ramirez ran out of the store for the man and as she was returning to the store, the bomb exploded.
Initial results of the post-blast investigation showed the bomb’s main component was an 81MM mortar. It was remotely trigged and was packed with nails.
More than 50 people were injured in the blast.
Police investigators have yet to determine the suspect's identity and his group affiliation.
The Cotabato City local government has put up a P2-million bounty for the arrest of the suspect.
The military initially blamed the Cotabato City bombing to the special operations group of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Asian terror group Jemaah Islamiyah.
Authorities said the bombing could have been connected to the twin blasts in Jolo, Sulu and Iligan City in Lanao del Norte. With a report from Lerio Bompat, ABS-CBN Northern Mindanao
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