May 6, 2004, The Philippine Star, Top JI leader in RP arrested, by Christina Mendez,

May 6, 2004, The Philippine Star, Top JI leader in RP arrested, by Christina Mendez,

A suspected finance officer of the terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah was arrested by police yesterday as part of a massive offensive to smoke out extremists plotting to wreak havoc four days before national and local elections on May 10.

However, police refused to identify the suspect or disclose where he was captured.

The STAR learned that he could be a Filipino named Abdullah, who might have replaced Indonesian Fathur Rohman al-Ghozi as Jemaah Islamiyah finance officer in the country.

Al-Ghozi was killed in a clash with government troops in an outlying town in North Cotabato last Oct. 12, three months after bolting his prison cell at the Philippine National Police (PNP) headquarters at Camp Crame.

The suspect will be presented to the media today by Defense Secretary Eduardo Ermita and PNP chief Director General Hermogenes Ebdane Jr. at a joint press conference at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City.

Ermita, also the Anti-Terrorism Task Force chief, told reporters yesterday he will announce today "significant findings" by the anti-terrorist police squad, Task Force Sanglahi, which had captured the suspected terrorist.

Operation "Brown Batik," a special anti-terrorism intelligence project led to the discovery of the Jemaah Islamiyah’s money trail in the Philippines, he added.

Director Avelino Razon Jr., PNP operations chief, told reporters yesterday they have received intelligence reports that terrorists are out to "perpetrate terror acts" before and during the elections to destablize the government.

"There is a threat on the President’s life," he said. "This is appreciated not only by the Presidential Security Group, but by National Security Adviser (Norberto Gonzales).

"In like manner, the CPP-NPA is also taking advantage in burning cell sites and engaging in the collection of permit-to-campaign-fees from candidates."

Armed Forces chief Gen. Narciso Abaya has placed the military on the highest alert ahead of the May 10 elections.

However, Abaya warned there was no fool-proof plan to prevent an attack by the Abu Sayyaf which is believed linked to the al-Qaeda terror network of Osama bin Laden.

"We have made a number of arrests and we have confiscated a number of explosives, but there is no 100 percent guarantee that we have arrested all of them," he said.

Two men were captured over the weekend trying to plant a bomb at the main office of the Commission on Elections in Intramuros, Manila.

Late last March, authorities said they foiled a bombing campaign in Metro Manila by the Abu Sayyaf targeting commuter trains and shopping malls.

In late February, the Abu Sayyaf claimed to have bombed theSuperFerry 14 passenger ship off Corregidor island in Manila Bay, killing more than 100 people.

Security forces are also facing threats from New People’s Army (NPA) rebels, who have vowed to kill candidates who enter their areas with armed bodyguards.

The NPA has been blamed for over 10 election-related killings.

Police have marked 44 towns and cities as "hot spots" for potential violence, many of them in the Visayas and Mindanao.

Fears have also been raised about potential unrest should neither President Arroyo nor opposition standard-bearer Fernando Poe Jr. win by a decisive margin.