Bomb Expert Arrested in Philippine Blast

An army captain who teaches demolition at the Philippine Military Academy was arrested in a bombing described by President Corazon Aquino as an attempt to assassinate her, the armed forces chief said today.

Four other officers and 30 enlisted men at the academy--the Philippines’ version of West Point--also have been taken in for questioning in the bombing Wednesday that killed four people and wounded more than 30, investigators said.

Aquino, who has weathered several coup attempts since taking power in February, 1986, said the bombing four days before her visit Sunday to the academy was “a dastardly act of cowardice” and vowed revenge. (Story, Page 8.)

Armed Forces Chief of Staff Gen. Fidel Ramos said today that Capt. Wilhelm Doromal, an explosives and demolition instructor at the academy, provided the “most likely and plausible lead” to the bombing.

Ramos said he had ordered the captain “arrested and detained for interrogation” but he insisted that investigators are pursuing other angles in the case. Authorities said the military has been interrogating the captain for several days.

All ‘Mentioned His Name’

Armed Forces spokesman Col. Honesto Isleta said that “workers in the area had implicated the captain” in the bombing and that “everyone mentioned his name as being in the area.”

Doromal was charged with illegal possession of firearms, Isleta said.

Government television reported that 1,830 rounds of ammunition, grenade launchers, rifle grenades, electrical wires and a detonator were found in the captain’s home in Baguio, 130 miles north of Manila.

Chief investigator Brig. Gen. Jesus de la Cruz said the captain told the military that the weapons were materials for his class.