Bondi terrorists said to have holed up in hotel for most of Philippines visit before attack

The terrorists who gunned down 15 people in an attack on a Jewish event at Australia’s Bondi Beach this week holed themselves up in a Philippines hotel for weeks and left a tip on their way out, staff tell AFP.

Australian authorities are investigating whether Sajid Akram and his son Naveed trained with extremists last month during a trip to the southern Mindanao region of the Philippines, where there is a long history of Islamist insurgencies.

The Philippines says there is no evidence to suggest that the country was being used to coach terrorists.

The men entered the Philippines on November 1, with Davao listed as their final destination, immigration officials confirmed this week.

They checked into room 315 of the GV Hotel the same day, paying about $16 per night for the small room with two single beds.

The men typically only left their room for an hour or so each day and largely kept to themselves, night desk manager Angelica Ytang, 20, tells AFP.

“They weren’t approachable like other foreigners. Other foreigners usually chat with me, but they didn’t,” she says, adding that her only interactions were with Naveed, while the father “always looked down” and avoided eye contact.

The pair never discussed the purpose of their stay and would typically leave the hotel in the morning, but “didn’t stay out long… the longest we observed was about one hour”, Ytang says.

Ytang says she had never seen the men meet with anyone or take a vehicle.

“They just walked around. That’s all they did,” she says

Staff recognized their faces instantly in news reports about the Sydney massacre, she says. Two other hotel employees confirm their stay.

A regional police spokeswoman says Davao police will release a statement on Thursday, without providing further details.