The skeletal remains of a man believed to have been beheaded by the extremist Abu Sayyaf were found in a cave in Basilan province last Monday, a regional Army spokesman said Friday.
Citing belated reports, Armed Forces Western Mindanao Command spokesman Lt. Col. Randolph Cabangbang said the skeletal remains were exhumed by troops belonging to the 4th Scout Ranger Battalion from a cave at Sitio Kurellem, Brgy. Silangkum in Tipo-Tipo town.
The area used to be a haven of the Abu Sayyaf, the al-Qaeda-linked bandit group responsible for a number of bombing and kidnapping activities in Metro Manila and southern Philippines since the 1990s.
He said the soldiers decided to exhume the cave, which can accommodate around 10 people, because there is supposedly evidence that the human remains were not buried in a "traditional way."
Cabangbang said that except for the skull, the bones were intact. He said preliminary reports indicated that the remains may possibly belong to a heavily-built, tall person.
Also discovered with the bones were a piece of blue male underwear, white sweatshirt, wornout pants, and a red malong, he said.
Cabangbang said that the skeletal remains have been properly buried by the soldiers in a marked grave. He said efforts are underway to identify the remains. with Kimberly Jane Tan/RSJ
