Fake ID: 'Malaysian' barred from entering Philippines turns out to be wanted Abu Sayyaf member

KOTA KINABALU: The case of a "Malaysian" man, who was barred entry in to Manila for terror links, has taken a twist as Filipino investigators found him to be a member of the notorious militant Abu Sayyaf group.

The man, who flew in from Kuala Lumpur to Manila on a Malaysian passport, was not only linked to Jemaah Islamiah activities but was also a wanted Abu Sayyaf member involved in kidnappings linked to Abu Sayyaf commander Radulan Sahiron.

The 53-year-old man going by the name "Omar bin Harun" on his Malaysian passport was apparently a Filipino with the name Airola @ Satar, who was listed under the Terrorism Screening Centre of the Federal Bureau of Investigations, according officials in Philippines.

He had flown in to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila with his wife and two children on a Philippines Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur at about 5.30pm on Tuesday (May 10).

Initially, he was barred entry into the Philippines by immigration authorities but investigations revealed that he was a Filipino involved in the southern Philippines Lamitan City siege in 2001 and also in several kidnappings.

On Friday (May 13), Philippines's Southern Police District (SPD) director Brig General Jimili Macaraeg said the suspect has been placed under arrest after it found that he was a Filipino citizen who used a Malaysian passport to hide his real identity.

He said a witness, who was also a kidnap victim in August 2002, had positively identified Airola through a photograph as one of her Abu Sayyaf abductors.

"We are conducting a thorough investigation and intelligence gathering to determine the reason for his (Airola) return to the country considering he is a fugitive wanted by law," he said.

Regional intelligence sources also said that he was listed on the terror list for his involvement with facilitating five Malaysians linked to Jemaah Islamiah activities involved in the failed 2017 Marawi siege.

The source said that Philippines police and intelligence believed that Harun acted as a facilitator for Malaysian Dr Mahmud Ahmad, who was killed in the Marawi siege.

The source also disclosed that Airola had told Filipino investigators that he had entered Sabah sometime in 1983 using the backdoor into Sandakan with the help of his brother.

Airola told Filipino investigators that on his entry into Sabah he subsequently obtained a Malaysian birth certificate. He then applied for the Malaysian citizenship, which was obtained in 2008, the source said.

Airola's wife and children initially stayed on in Lamitan City but he later smuggled his children in to Sabah.

Airola also has a second wife living in Pandan, Selangor, and a former wife living in Dubai, the source said, adding that he had travelled to Dubai and the Philippines with the use of his Malaysian passport.

The source said that Airola's last trip to Manila was in January 2020 before the Covid-19 pandemic lockdown and his current trip was to go to Basilan for his wife's medical treatment.

The source said that Airola refused to admit he was a member of the Abu Sayyaf during interrogations but witnesses had identified him as one of the kidnappers.