Improvised bomb defused in Basilan

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ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines–An improvised explosive device found outside a motorcycle store in Isabela City, Basilan Monday morning was defused by authorities, a local police official said.

Superintendent Albert Larubis, Isabela City police chief, said the bomb, which “looks more like a pipe bomb,” was fashioned from a “cylindrical tube, TNT, battery and [blasting] cap.”

It was found outside the Philippine Motors King Inc., on Veterans Avenue in Isabela City.

Larubis said a concerned civilian alerted the police about the presence of a bag “with protruding wires” outside the establishment.

He said the owner of the motorcycle store had “received extortion letters from lawless groups” prior to the discovery of the bomb.