The police on Monday started to conduct monitoring operations in a bid to verify reports indicating that suspects in the bombing of a park in Hilongos, Leyte have made their way to Bohol.
According to Bohol Provincial Police Office (BPPO) spokesman Senior Insp. Vincent Dumaguing, it is possible that the bombing suspects are in Bohol given the short distance between the province and Leyte.
He said that the suspects could have easily crossed the sea and entered Bohol using small boats.
The Provincial Intelligence Branch in Bohol are set to investigate the accounts which circulated in social media sites indicating that the alleged bombers fled towards an island in the province, Dumaguing added.
Although unconfirmed, the report has prompted the BPPO under director Senior Supt. Felipe Natividad to maintain the full alert status of policemen in the province.
The BPPO has also started to coordinate with the military and Coast Guard in Bohol to further tighten security particularly in Leyte-adjacent towns such as Ubay, Bien Unido, Trinidad and Talibon.
Meanwhile, Camp Dagohoy ordered its personnel to inspect coastal towns and maintain monitoring operations in these areas, said Dumaguing.
The police official also urged the public to be vigilant and report suspicious activities and personalities in their respective areas.
In the last week of December, an area in front of the Hilongos Municapal Hall, was bombed by unidentified suspects using two improvised explosive devices.
The explosions left 32 people injured. (Rey Tutas)