UAE | General
Witnesses to testify against plotters
Three Filipino witnesses will testify against three foreigners who were arrested by the police last week for allegedly planning to bomb the Vietnamese Embassy in Manila.
- By Delon Porcalla
- Published: 00:00 September 15, 2001
Three Filipino witnesses will testify against three foreigners who were arrested by the police last week for allegedly planning to bomb the Vietnamese Embassy in Manila.
Justice Secretary Hernando Perez, Immigration chief Andrea Domingo and Police regional chief Hermogenes Ebdane presented the witnesses to the press.
They were identified as Alfonso Espinosa, Paterno Degoma and electrician Joseph Boquecosa.
On September 4, Vo Van Duc alias Vinh Nguyen Tan, 41, an American-Vietnamese, Huynh Thuan Ngoc alias Tom, 42, a Swiss-Vietnamese, and Japanese Makoto Ito, 62, were charged before Pasig City's regional trial court with plotting to bomb the Vietnamese Embassy.
State Prosecutor Emmanuel Velasco, who handled the inquest proceedings, filed the charges against the foreigners. If convicted, they could be imprisoned for 20 years. The judge recommended a $4,000 bail each for their temporary liberty.
"The leaders of the terrorist group gained notoriety with the successful bombing of the Embassy of Vietnam in Bangkok, Thailand and the aborted attack in London," the justice department said.
Espinosa and Degoma said they were initially recruited by the foreigners to serve as 'prospectors' of possible victims of Datu Cresencio Dagasdas and Florinda Estrada who were involved in fake gold and federal notes swindling activities.
But soon they were used as "couriers" of explosive components from Manila to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) from May 22 to June 24.
Boquecoso, a native of Baguio City in northern Luzon, said he was contracted, by suspect Nguyen Huu Chanh, through Espinosa, "to convert transistor radios into a switch and power source of improvised explosive devices".
Police and immigration agents arrested the foreigners during a raid of a town house in suburban San Juan on August 30. The raiding team surprised Vo Van Due and Huynh Thuan Ngoc who were in the process of assembling the explosive devices.
At the time of the raid, Ito allegedly tried to block the entrance of the policemen.
The police tagged Vo Van Doc as a member of the Free Vietnam Revolutionary Group, said to be the military arm of the Government of Free Vietnam – an organisation for the liberation of Vietnam from communist rule.
Vo is believed to be the head of an international terrorist cell operating in Manila. The police also said Vo is wanted by the Royal Thai Police for his alleged part in the foiled bombing of the Vietnamese Embassy in Bangkok last on June 19, 2001.
Among the items seized from the suspects were three plastic bags of ammonium nitrate; eight pieces of Coleman water jugs; 14 pieces of electrical relay; and three rolls of legwire with improvised blasting caps, electrical, packing, and mounting tape; one Nokia 3210 cellular phone; one improvised explosive device with booster detonating cord; assorted pieces of electronic wiring; and assorted documents and reading material.
The justice department did not file charges against the alleged owner of the condominium unit, Florida Estrada, who was not arrested during the operation.
"The alleged culpability of Estrada will be determined in a regular preliminary investigation since she was not among those arrested during the raid," Velasco said.
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