Bondi Beach shooters stayed in PH prior to attack, BI confirms

The Bureau of Immigration (BI) on Tuesday confirmed that the gunmen involved in the fatal shooting at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia stayed in the Philippines prior to the incident.

Australian media named the shooters as Sajid Akram and his son Naveed Akram.

In a statement, the BI said Sajid, 50, and Naveed, 24, arrived in the Philippines together last November 1, 2025 from Sydney, Australia.

"Both reported Cotabato City and Davao as their destinations," the BI said.

Based on BI records, the two left the country on November 28, 2025 on a connecting flight from Davao to Manila, with Sydney as their final destination.

The father-and-son team toting long-barrelled guns on Monday shot and killed 15 people including a 10-year-old girl at Sydney's Bondi Beach.

The father was killed in a shootout with officers, while the son is in a critical condition in hospital, under police guard.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Tuesday the duo appeared to be driven by "Islamic State ideology."

Tony Burke, the home affairs minister, said the father arrived in Australia on a student visa in 1998 and had become a permanent resident. The son was an Australia-born citizen.

LINK TO TERROR GROUPS IN PH?

The father-and-son's possible connections to terrorist groups or activities in the Philippines remained unverified, the military said.

“At this time, there is no validated information confirming such claims,” Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesperson Colonel Francel Margareth Padilla told ABS-CBN News in a text message.

Padilla added that matters involving the travel of foreign nationals and potential terrorist links are being closely coordinated through appropriate government agencies.

The AFP assured the public that it “continues to work with the broader security sector to maintain vigilance against any form of terrorism and remains fully committed to supporting civilian authorities in safeguarding national security, in accordance with the Constitution and existing laws.”

'HEIGHTENED ALERT' REMAINS

Despite the overseas incident, acting PNP chief Lt. Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. stressed that authorities have not detected any major security threats in the country.

“Walang pagbabanta sa seguridad na aming namo-monitor pero makakaasa ang publiko na naka-alerto ang kapulisan upang masiguro ang kaligtasan ng bawat isa,” he said in a statement.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5810825&forum_id=2...id.#49512936)