Rebellion raps filed against arrested Indonesian in QC court

November 2, 2017

Police filed rebellion and other criminal charges on Thursday against an Indonesian suspected to be member of the Maute terrorist group before the Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office.

Muhammad Ilham Syahputra, the 23-year-old alleged ISIS member nabbed in Marawi City last Wednesday, was brought to the prosecutor for inquest proceedings.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) charged Syahputra with rebellion under Republic Act 134, illegal possession of firearms and explosives under Republic Act 10591 and Republic Act 9516, and crimes against humanity under Republic Act 9581.

Deputy City Prosecutor Alfredo Agcaoili and Asst. State Prosecutor Rodan Parrocha submitted the complaint against the Indonesian for resolution.

In its complaint, the PNP alleged Syahputra was part of the Maute-ISIS group that attacked Marawi last May. The group battled the military for nearly five months until President Rodrigo Duterte declared the city liberated.

"Based on accounts of rescued hostages, the ISIS-inspired Maute local terrorist group was reinforced by foreign nationals such as Indonesians, Malaysian and some were even Arabs," the complaint stated.

Police said Syahputra was arrested by civilians and militia under Marawi’s Barangay Peacekeeping Action Team (BPAT) after he was seen swimming on Lanao Lake near the battle zone. DMS