Arrest order out for Maute, Abu Sayyaf members, supporters

June 1, 2017

The government has ordered the arrest of at least 125 members of local terror groups Maute and Abu Sayyaf and their suspected supporters, Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said Thursday. Aguirre said Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana issued the order as administrator of martial law. Aguirre said the four-page arrest order ordered law enforcers to apprehend 125 suspected members of the Maute and Abu Sayyaf terrorist groups, whose names are mostly aliases. It was the first arrest order issued under the implementation of martial law and suspension of writ of habeas corpus in Mindanao. The Department of Justice also issued lookout bulletin order against the 125 individuals listed in the arrest warrant. Aguirre said he has also ordered the NBI to implement the arrest order and begin with verification on identities of the 18 members of Maute clan living in the National Capital Region who surrendered to the bureau last Wednesday. "The NBI has yet to determine if they are included in the arrest order, so we cannot put them under arrest yet," he said. Among the Mautes who appeared before the NBI was a two-year-old boy. They were accompanied by National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) South Luzon regional director Dalomilang Parahiman. “These are law abiding citizens. Their only crime is their surname is Maute,” Parahiman said. He added most of them have been residing in Manila for more than 30 years. The order said subjects who have been "identified as members/supporters/spies/couriers" of the terror groups will be investigated on charges of rebellion under Article 134 of the Revised Penal Code. It said persons in the list were responsible for "indiscriminately killing, kidnapping, bombings in Marawi City and some parts of Mindanao, sowing terror to the populace and agreed upon by them and prompted by common designs, come to an agreement and decision to commit the crime of rebellion." It also directed authorities to make sure that charges will be filed before the Department of Justice or local prosecutor's office against the subjects within three days after they are arrested, as provided by rules on criminal procedure, and submit written report within the same period. The order pointed out rights of the persons ordered arrested - including human rights and custodial rights - are "protected by Philippine law." Aguirre said the arrest order could be implemented outside Mindanao. "The declaration of martial law is only in Mindanao, but the effect of this arrest order is that it can be enforced in Luzon and Visayas. It means that even if these people committed the crime of rebellion in Mindanao, they can be arrested in any part of the country," Aguirre said. DMS