AN Egyptian, who is reportedly a “commander” of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), and his Filipina partner were arrested by security forces during a raid in Manila last Sunday. The duo yielded a firearm and bomb parts.
National Police chief Director General Ronald M. dela Rosa said the arrest of of Fehmi Lassqued alias John Rasheed Lassoned, a native of Syria, and his Filipina companion, Anabel Moncera Salipada, 32, thwarted possible terror plans in the capital city.
Lassqued and Salipada were nabbed at Room 409 of Casa Blanca Apartment along M. Adriatico Street, Malate, Manila, during a search conducted by operatives of the Regional Police Intelligence Operations Unit of the National Capital Region Police Office.
The operation, which was joined by the Armed Forces’ Joint Special Operations Group, was backed by a search warrant that was issued by Judge Benjamin T. Pozon of Branch 139 of the Regional Trial Court in Makati City.
“Lassqued and Salipada were promptly placed under arrest upon the discovery of assorted firearms, ammunition and components for [an] improvised explosive device, such as electronic circuits, resistors, capacitors, batteries and pipe fittings,” dela Rosa said.
The PNP chief presented Lassqued during a news conference, where he also announced that an ISIS flag was recovered during the raid.
The Egyptian, whose presence in the Philippines was sounded off to the government by foreign intelligence agencies, entered the country via Iran in 2016 through a fake Tunisian passport.
“His link with [the] Marawi [siege] is still being determined, but suffice it to say that we learned his presence through our foreign intelligence counterparts,” dela Rosa said.
Until his arrest, the Egyptian had been passing himself off as a recruiter for migrant workers.
Dela Rosa said that Lassqued was a former negotiator between the “ISIS leadership and local government officials in Syria and Turkey.”
“He is a former ISIS commander in [the] Syria-Turkey border, so he is a commander of ISIS. In fact, there was an ISIS flag that was taken from his possession during the implementation of the search warrant,” dela Rosa said.
Lassqued is still undergoing a debriefing by policemen.