AUTHORITIES have filed criminal complaints for kidnapping and illegal detention against the suspects behind the abduction of a US citizen in the province of Zamboanga del Norte, the police said Wednesday, October 30, 2024.
Police Brigadier General Bowenn Joey Masauding, Police Regional Office-Zamboanga Peninsula director, said the case was filed in the afternoon of Tuesday, October 29, before the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office in Sindangan, Zamboanga del Norte.
Masauding, who also heads the Critical Incident Management Task Group (CIMTG) "Eastman," did not identify the accused except to say six were principal suspects and the other John Does were accessories of the crime.
Masauding said three of the suspects are already in their custody. Two of them have surrendered while the other one was arrested in pursuit operation.
“The meticulous intelligence, investigation, and tactical operations also led to the identification of three other suspects with direct participation in the crime,” Masauding added.
He said the CIMTG “Eastman” has established the identities of the suspects involved in the kidnapping of Elliot Eastman in close collaboration with the National Bureau of Investigation, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, Western Mindanao Command, and Philippine Coast Guard.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Helen Galvez, Police Regional Office-Zamboanga Peninsula information officer, said they filed a case of kidnapping and serious illegal detention based on the extrajudicial confession of the two suspects who surrendered that Eastman was seized in exchange for ransom.
However, Galvez said the two did not mention the amount of ransom to be demanded from Eastman’s family in their extrajudicial confession.
Eastman, 26, of Vermont, USA, who married a native of Sibuco, Zamboanga del Norte, was seized by four armed men from their residence on October 17 on the coast of Barangay Poblacion.
One of the four gunmen shot Eastman in the leg after he resisted. The victim was dragged to a waiting motorboat that sped to the high seas.
Masauding said the search and rescue operations for Eastman continue across the Zamboanga Peninsula and nearby areas.
Masauding extends his gratitude to all the stakeholders, local chief executives, and supporters who aided in the immediate resolution of the case.
“We encourage everyone to report to your nearest police station any information about Elliot Eastman and his captors. Do it for the sake of the kidnapped victim. Do it for the future of Zamboanga Peninsula,” Masauding added.
Meanwhile, the cash reward being offered to anyone who could provide information that will lead to the resolution of Eastman’s kidnapping has increased to P500,000.
This, as Zamboanga del Norte third district Congressman Adrian Amatong has offered an additional P350,000 reward for anyone who could provide information leading to the rescue of Eastman.
Earlier, Sibuco Mayor Joel Ventura offered P150,000 cash reward—P100,000 for any information leading to the whereabouts of Eastman and P50,000 for any information leading to the location or identification of the motorboat, locally known as jungkong, the abductors have used when they seized the American. (SunStar Zamboanga)