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Tuesday, September 02, 2003
Suspected NPAs kidnap ferry boat passengers; manhunt on
By Louie B. Oranda
BUTUAN -- Military and police units are scouring the towns of Jabong and Santiago in Agusan del Norte for the ferry boat passengers who were believed to have been kidnapped last Aug. 27.
PNP Caraga Regional Director Alberto Olario said he ordered the Regional Mobile Group (RMG) to hunt armed men believed to be New People's Army (NPA) rebels who abducted six ferry boat passengers.
He said they believe the kidnap victims were brought to the forested part of Agusan del Norte last Aug.27.
The six victims, four of them women and two men rode from Manila going to Davao city Crior to the incident.
When the victims reached Tacloban they were told by a driver to transfer to another boat to reach Lipata. On reaching the port of Lipata, they boarded a van headed to Davao City.
While traversing the highway, armed men sporting long hair stopped the van. According to the suspects, the driver violated traffic rules.
When they opened the door, the armed men immediately boarded the van and told the driver to proceed until they reached the mountainside of Jabonga.
They were later told to leave the van and they started to walk going to the forest.
One of the victims identified as Josephene Valenzuela was released by kidnappers because she was pregnant. Her helper was also released with her.
Valenzuela reported the incident to the Butuan police. According to Valenzuela, she was with three girls who happened to be Japayukis while the men were engineers from Davao.
Police had sketchy information about the kidnappers and the victims since the woman hardly knew them. Valenzuela said the suspects were wearing fatigues but had no name tags on them.
She estimated that about 50 men were waiting for them in the forest.
Later Olario said the suspects were demanding money in exchange for the release of the passengers but the amount had not yet been stated.
It was reported that one of the victims texted a friend and said she was raped by her kidnappers. Jabonga and Santiago in Agusan del Norte had vast forests and is long known as a hideout of NPA rebels.
(September 1, 2003 issue)
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