PNP chief: No reason to hold 3 Mautes stopped at Naia

Philippine National Police chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa. Photo by Julliane Love de Jesus/INQUIRER.net

Philippine National Police chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa said the police had found no reasonable ground to hold the three persons with Maute surnames who were held at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport early this week.

“Wala silang nakitang reasonable ground to hold them further. Hindi nila napatunayan na ‘yung mga Maute na ‘yun ay kasama sa mga Maute na nag-stage ng rebellion sa Marawi,” he told reporters on Wednesday.

(They didn’t find any reasonable ground to hold them further.  They weren’t able to prove that these people with Maute surnames are with the Mautes who staged a rebellion in Marawi.)

Seven Malaysia-bound passengers — Ashary Maute, Yasser Maute, Abdulrahman Maute, Al Nizar Maute, Abdulcahar Maute, Acmali Mawiyag and Mawiyag Cota— were prevented from taking their flight on Monday for their suspected links with the Maute terrorist group.

READ: 7 KL-bound persons held at Naia over suspicion of links with Maute

Three of them were released after authorities found that they had not derogatory records.

“As of now they are cleared; that’s why we released them. But if later on ma-find out na ang mga tao pala na iyon ay involved sa gyera sa Marawi then magkakaroon tayo ng reasonable ground na i-hold sila (But if we find out later that these people are involved with the Marawi siege, then we’ll have reasonable ground to hold them),” Dela Rosa said.

He added that completing the three-day investigation was not necessary.

“It doesn’t mean na may binigay sa iyo na three days ubusin mo talaga to the detriment of the innocent people. As of this moment in time, the investigators found out na they are innocent, so bakit mo pahabain yung pagtitiis nila doon sa loob ng detention,” he said.

(It doesn’t mean that since they were given three day, they need to complete it to the detriment of the innocent people. As of this moment in time, the investigators found out they are innocent, so why extend their suffering inside detention.) Frances Mangosing/JE