The 24-year-old has previously been charged with numerous criminal offenses, including 15 murders and the commission of a terrorist act.

According to reports, Indian authorities were aware of the attacker’s Indian nationality from the very beginning.

Reports said that Sajid Akram, 50, an Indian national, and his son Naveed Akram, 24, an Australian national, arrived in the Philippines on November 1, 2025.

"He doesn’t have a firearm", says the mother of the attacker.