Bato dela Rosa: Personal grudge eyed as motive in Quiapo blast

© Danny Pata Several members of the Philippine Army are deployed in Quiapo, Manila to help policemen secure the district following the twin blasts on Saturday night, May 6, 2017. Two persons were killed and six others were killed in the twin blasts.

Philippine National Police chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa said Friday they were still eyeing personal grudge as a motive in the explosion in Quiapo, Manila over the weekend which claimed the lives of two people and injured six others.

Dela Rosa said they were not totally discounting the possibility of terrorism but they were more focused now on personal motive as the probe continues.

“Eh bakit sa kanya (Nasser Abinal) nakapangalan kung walang galit sa kanya. Bakit sa kanya idineliver? Iyan ang  pag-isipan niya. Kasi kung terorista ako, bakit ko sa isang tao lang (ipapadala), dapat doon sa maraming tao. Anyway, hindi pa naman tapos ang investigation, ongoing pa,” he said in an interview with reporters.

He was referring to Abinal, a Shiite Muslim cleric and a Bureau of Internal Revenue personnel, who was the subject of the package which eventually exploded.

Killed in the incident was a driver of GrabExpress who delivered the package and an aide of Abinal.

He said the Explosive and Ordnance Division (EOD has started reconstructing the improvised explosive device (IED).

“Iyon kasing reconstruction ng IED, it depends on the recovery of the fragments found in the crime scene. Kung walang marecover walang ma-reconstruct. So kung kaunti lang ang ma-recover, konti lang ang ma-reconstruct. So lahat 'yan kino-consider ng EOD at ng ating post blast investigator kung paano, to finally come up with, tuldukan ang post blast investigation na ‘yan,” he said.

Asked if the Maute group members could be behind the Quiapo blast, Dela Rosa said there is no clear report on the matter yet.

“Hindi naman klaro ang pagkasabi sa intelligence na mayroon talaga silang identified na Maute na andoon na, so I cannot claim (na mayroon nga),” he said.

He asked the public not to focus too much on the type of explosive used, saying that determining the motive was more important.

“Please huwag kayo agad mag-focus sa bomba, mag-focus tayo sa motive.  Sa ngayon na-establish natin ang motive ay personal talaga,” he said. — MDM, GMA News