MANILA, Philippines–A carton box containing an improvised explosive device (IED) was found inside a passenger bus in Surigao City, but was immediately detonated by authorities.
Reports from Surigao City Police Station said Tuesday an IED placed at the rear seat of a PP Leyte Biliran Bus unit was discovered Monday morning by a commuter while the vehicle made a stopover at an eatery on the national highway in Barangay (village) Lipata. 
Authorities are looking into two possible motives behind the bombing attempt. One is the unsettled case involving one of the bus line’s units in Cabadbaran City, Agusan del Norte sometime in November 2013. The other angle was extortion.
According to police, a female passenger from Southern Samar told them that a male passenger placed the carton box at the back of the bus, which was parked at an eatery, and immediately alighted the vehicle.
When another passenger from Southern Leyte boarded the bus after he relieved himself, he noticed smoke coming out of the vehicle and then called the driver to check its origin.
The driver carried the box out of the bus and brought it to a safe area beside the highway.
According to the report, it took more than an hour for the authorities and Coast Guard K9 Units to detonate the IED using a water disruptor, a material for bomb disposal.
“When examined, (the box contained) gasoline dissolved with paint used as main charge, a detonating cord as the initiator, original time fuse and improvised firecracker fuse, and one gallon plastic container,” police said.
The bus with plate number TOC 681 arrived from Davao City and was heading to Luzon.
Police are still conducting further investigation on the incident.
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