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Philippines files terrorism charges against Bangladeshi man
Philippine police arrested a Bangladeshi mobile phone repairman for illegal possession of explosives on Thursday, saying they had found bombs in his shop in the troubled southern island of Mindanao.
- Agencies
- Published: 13:51 December 4, 2008
Manila: Philippine police arrested a Bangladeshi mobile phone repairman for illegal possession of explosives on Thursday, saying they had found bombs in his shop in the troubled southern island of Mindanao.
Police are also investigating whether Mohammad Rafiqullah, who appeared before a court in Manila, was involved in a series of bomb attacks in the south, said police intelligence chief Francisco Villaroman.
Rafiqullah, who is married to a Filipino, denied accusations he was a bomb-maker with links to the country's largest Muslim rebel group, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), and the regional militant network Jemaah Islamiah (JI).
Police had earlier mistakenly identified Rafiqullah as a Pakistani national after an elite team of army and police commandos stormed his shop in Shariff Kabunsuan, a poor province largely populated by Muslims.
His wife, Sulaika, said her husband was a simple man who repaired phones and tended a small farm.
"My husband is a cell phone repairman, not a terrorist," Sulaika said. "He has never been involved in any bombing."
About 11 people died and more than 50 were wounded in bomb attacks in at least three bus terminals on Mindanao since July.
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