THE Abu Sayyaf Group released on Tuesday, January 15, an Indonesian national whom they held captive for at least four months, a military official said on Wednesday.
Western Mindanao Command spokesperson Colonel Gerry Besana said Juragan Kapal Samsul Saguni was brought to the residence of Sulu Governor Abdul Sakur Tan in Poblacion, Maimbung, Sulu at around 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
He said Saguna was released through the efforts of Tan and soldiers of the 41st Infantry Battalion and the 5th and 11th Infantry Division of the Philippine Army based in the said area.
On September 11, members of the Abu Sayyaf group captured Saguni and one of his companions identified as Usman Yunos, while onboard a Malaysian fishing vessel in the waters off Semporna in Sabah.
Yunos was rescued by Philippine government forces on December 6.
Besana said soldiers of the Joint Task Force (JTF) Sulu facilitated the custodial debriefing of Saguni at the JTF Sulu headquarters in Barangay Bus-bus, Jolo, Sulu.
He said the victim was found to be physically healthy after undergoing a medical check-up at Kuta Heneral Teodulfo Bautista Hospital.
The military said the Abu Sayyaf is still holding five foreigners and three Filipinos in captivity in the hinterlands of Sulu. (SunStar Philippines)