Kidnapping back in Metro; 3 taken

Kidnapping is back in Metro Manila.

Three children of a Filipino-Chinese businessman and their driver were abducted on Tuesday night in La Loma, Quezon City, police said yesterday.

The Central Police District-La Loma Station identified the victims as Jasmine, John Christian and Joey Cua, children of businessman Michael Cua, and their driver Benito de la Cruz.

According to housemaid Anna Piniquito, she and the victims were in a red Honda Civic car when a dark green Hyundai Starex van blocked their vehicle at the corner of Del Monte and Cordillera streets in Barangay St. Peter at around 6:45 p.m.

Two men on board a motorcycle were also closely following the van, the maid said.

Piniquito said one of the men on the motorcycle alighted and smashed the car’s window on the driver’s side. Then, she said, they were all ordered to board the van.

However, the maid said she was able to escape. She believed, though, that she was freed on purpose so that she could tell her employer and the police about the incident.

Manila policemen recovered the van about two hours later at the dimly lit corner of Perez and Apacible streets in Paco.

Police said they found the van only after they received reports of a vehicular accident.

Witnesses told the police that the van’s driver fled on foot after the vehicle bumped a Mitsubishi Galant.

Ermita police station commander Superintendent Miguel Laurel said their search on the Starex van yielded an Intratec 9 mm. sub-machinegun with 32 bullets and a 9 mm. Daewoo pistol with 13 bullets.

The van is now at the WPD’s Traffic Enforcement Group headquarters in Port Area.