Manila: Pasay City’s international airport was put on high alert after four people who were suspected of launching a failed car-bomb attack were arrested early on Monday, a senior official said.
The four suspects, none of whom were identified, were arrested after security guards found more than 10 improvised explosive devices inside a utility vehicle when it was inspected in the parking lot of terminal 3 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) at 1:45 am on Monday, said Gen. Vicente Guerzon, senior assistant general manager of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA).
“The entire NAIA complex is placed on full alert,” said Guerzon, adding that the suspects were arrested by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation Anti-Organised and Transnational Crime Division (NBI-AOTCD), and NBI Counter-Terrorism Division (NBI-CTD).
“They were planning to bomb NAIA and a nearby mall,” said Guerzon, but did not disclose details of any group the suspects could be affiliated with. Firearms were also seized from the suspects.
The arrests were made after the police traced the owner of the car through its plate number, police said in a report that was released by the Philippine National Police headquarters in suburban Quezon City.
The four suspects were placed under the custody of the NBI, which continued a follow-up operation to apprehend more suspects involved in the bombing plot, said the report.
“Last month, we received a report that a group was planning to bomb NAIA,” a source from the NBI who requested for anonymity told Gulf News.
Airport authorities augmented the number of deployed security personnel, including dogs trained to sniff out explosives, at the terminal, according to Guerzon, adding that flights of the Cebu Pacific and the Philippine Airlines were not cancelled despite the incident.
NAIA has a total of three terminals. Terminal 1 is being refurbished, prompting several foreign airlines to transfer their operations to terminals 2 and 3.
