The father and son suspected of carrying out Sunday’s Bondi Beach massacre holed up in a hotel for most of their nearly month-long stay in the Philippines in November, rarely leaving their rooms and eating fast food, a hotel employee told CNN.
Sajid and Naveed Akram would only go outside the building for almost an hour a day, every day, before returning to their rooms, said the hotel staff member who gave his name only as June.
They had no visitors during their stay at the hotel in the southern city of Davao, according to the witness.
The Akrams’ trip to the Philippines has become a major focus of investigations into their motives and preparations for their anti-Semitic attack, which killed 15 people during a Jewish Hanukkah celebration on Sydney’s world-famous beach.
The Australian police made it clear that they are struggling to find out what the couple did during their stay and if it had any direct relation to the attack.
Earlier in the week, Australia’s public broadcaster ABC reported that Australian counter-terrorism officials believe the men underwent military-style training while in the Philippines. Philippine officials said no evidence has yet emerged that the couple are receiving military training and said they are working with their Australian counterparts.
A stay of 28 days in one city
The southern island of Mindanao, of which Davao is the largest city, is not an especially popular tourist destination for foreign nationals. Like much of the Philippines, it boasts dense jungle, mountains and tropical beaches, but has endured a painful history of Islamic extremism.
And experts tell CNN that although terrorism in the Philippines has decreased in recent years, many Islamic militant groups remain active and armed in more remote regions – and are ready to train foreign fighters who have been flocking to the Southeast Asian nation.
The Akrams initially booked an eight-day stay at the GV Hotel from November 1. On the eighth day, they extended their stay until November 28 and paid the remaining balance in cash.
The hotel where the men stayed is described online as a star property with modestly priced rooms.
The Davao Police interviewed hotel employees at the GV Hotel on Wednesday.
Jun told CNN that the two men were very polite and respectful to the staff, greeting them with smiles and saying good morning, afternoon and good night.
They also allowed the staff to enter their rooms for cleaning every day, and the staff found nothing wrong, only takeaway food packages from Jollibee, the country’s iconic fried chicken chain.
Jun said he later recognized the men when he saw footage from the Bondi attack – the only difference was that Naveed had shorter hair than when he had visited the hotel.
The Philippine government said this week it is in contact with Australian law enforcement counterparts.
“We reaffirm our support for efforts to protect communities from intolerance, hatred, and violence,” Foreign Affairs Minister Theresa P. Lazaro wrote on X after speaking with her Australian counterpart.
Repression on militant groups
Philippine National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano said Wednesday that no evidence has yet emerged in the investigation into whether the suspected shooters had trained with Filipino militants, the Associated Press reported. “There is no indicator or any information that they have undergone training” in Mindanao, Ano said.
Ano also dismissed media reports portraying the southern Philippines as a hotspot for violent extremism as “outdated” and “misleading.”
For decades, Mindanao has been wracked by unrest and conflict, including clashes between authorities and a local separatist movement with widespread allegations of human rights abuses by all sides.
In 2017, the militant groups in the Philippines were very upset when the Abu Sayyaf and Maute groups – the latter of which had declared allegiance to the Islamic State – captured and occupied Marawi, the country’s largest city with a Muslim majority.
The violence forced more than 350,000 residents to flee the city and surrounding areas before Philippine forces liberated it after a months-long bloody siege.
Since that siege, Philippine officials have cracked down heavily on militant groups. In the 2025 Global Terrorism Index, the Philippines ranked 20th out of 79 nations, on a scale that measures the impact of terrorism. In contrast, in 2019 – before the law came into force – it ranked 9th.
“The remnants of these groups have been fragmented, deprived of leadership, and operationally degraded,” Ano added.
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