THE Bureau of Immigration (BI) deported a suspected former commander of the terrorist group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) on Oct. 6 for violation of the Philippine Immigration Act.
In a statement, BI Commissioner Jaime H. Morente said the alleged ISIS commander, Egyptian national Fehmi Lassoued, 33, was deported following his order on Sept. 6. Mr. Lassoued remains included in the BI blacklist.
“The arrest and subsequent deportation of Lassoued is definitely a big accomplishment of the Bureau. We have strengthened our Anti-Terrorist Group, which actively coordinates with local and foreign counterparts to ensure that we keep our country safe from these foreign terrorists,” Mr. Morente said.
The BI said complaints were filed against Lassoued and his Filipino companion upon their arrest in February by the Philippine National Police and Philippine Army. Allegedly found in Lassoued’s possession were a gun, several improvised explosive devices, an ISIS flag, and maps with drawings of the terrorist group’s alleged operational plans.
The complaints, however, were dismissed in March due to insufficiency of evidence. Nevertheless, the suspect was still deported for submitting false information in his application for a working visa and for using an altered Tunisian passport.
An official of the BI Anti-Terrorist group also disclosed that Mr. Lassoued’s declared employer in his working visa is “fictitious.”
He also has several aliases including Haytham/Haytam Abdulhamid Yusof, Haitam Abdel Hamid Ahmed Youssef, and Youssef Haitham Abdelhamid. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas
