THE arrest of the widow of slain Malaysian bomb maker Zulkifli bin Hir a.k.a. Marwan would weaken the terror group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), although police said they remain vigilant to thwart any retaliatory attack.
Like the death of Marwan in 2015, Juromee Dongon’s arrest in Lanao del Norte on Sunday struck a blow to the JI and would likely further weaken the group, said Supt. Lemuel Gonda, Camp Alagar spokesperson.
Marwan was killed in an operation that also claimed the lives of 44 officers from the police’s Special Action Force and a handful of armed rebels and civilians in a village in Mamasapano, Maguindanao on Jan. 25, 2015.
Gonda said authorities were not taking any chances as the group’s remaining members may stage retaliatory attacks following the loss of their key leaders.
Gonda described Dongon as a “high-profile” personality and played a vital role in the operations of the JI even after the death of her husband.
Dongon’s involvement in JI was through all forms of support, from access to financial sources to networking with their associates and other terror groups, Gonda said.
Marwan was Dongon’s second husband. She was first married to Khadaffy Janjanlani, a slain leader of the Abu Sayyaf.
Dongon denied being connected to the terrorist organization.
“I only became controversial because of my husband. So take out Khadaffy and Marwan from my life, I am just Juromee,” she told reporters while detained at the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group regional headquarters in Cagayan de Oro on Sunday.
Dongon is the sister of Abu Sayyaf member Reneer Lou Dongon, who was arrested in Bohol last year and is said to be the leader of Khilafa Islamiyah Mindanao, the group that carried out a bombing in Cagayan de Oro in 2013.
Dongon’s brother was married to Supt. Maria Christina Nobleza, who was the deputy regional chief of Davao crime laboratory. Both were arrested in Bohol.
Dongon was arrested with SPO4 Andy Atta and his wife Lorilie Dongon-Atta, Romeo Dongon, and Norein Santos, in two separate raids in Tubod and Baroy towns in Lanao del Norte on Sunday.
Seized from them were various firearms and ammunition, laptops, cellphones, and materials usually used in assembling improvised explosive device.
The joint operations were carried out by intelligence, police and military operatives, based on search warrants against the personalities. (pna)
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