Massive search launched for missing American sailor

ANGELES CITY — An entire Army battalion, two teams of Navy special warfare commandos and an Air Force Huey helicopter scoured yesterday the slopes of Mt. Pinatubo for a US naval officer who vanished after his group was attacked by armed men the other day.

US Navy LtJG. Scott Alan Washburn was reported missing after he and four other US sailors, four Filipino sailors and a tour guide were held up by armed men after a trek up the volcano.

There was no sign of Washburn as night fell yesterday. A helicopter search over an area of about 10 square kilometers was called off until daybreak. About 100 troops continued a ground search.

Reports from the Philippine and US navies claimed that Washburn’s group was attacked by communist New People’s Army guerrillas but reliable sources here told The STAR the NPA has denied involvement.

Presidential Spokesman Rigoberto Tiglao confirmed the source’s claim and said a "well-armed and organized" band of robbers, locally known as Sala-guinto Gang, was believed to be behind the incident.

President Arroyo, nonetheless, ordered Maj. Gen. Rodolfo Garcia, chief of the newly created Armed Forces Northern Command (Northcom), to locate Washburn as soon as possible.

Tiglao said Garcia also suspected the Salaguinto Gang whose members include ethnic Aetas who consider the volcano their tribal land.

"From General Garcia’s assessment, it doesn’t seem credible that it was the NPAs who abducted him. There is also a likelihood that they might have posed as NPA rebels," Tiglao said.

Authorities believe Washburn, an experienced mountaineer, was safe but was hiding somewhere on the 1,445-meter peak which brims with small craters and volcanic debris

The US naval officer, who was trailing his companions on their way down the slope, must have hidden when he heard gunfire ahead of him, said Elmer Cato, spokesman for the Visiting Forces Agreement Commission (VFACom).

Washburn was accompanied by US sailors Ensigns Shaun Bobbit, William Alston, Patrick Harrison and Jeffrey Bushman, all of whom were participating in ongoing military exercises.

The Americans took an organized tourist trek up the volcano and were escorted by Philippine Navy men, led by Petty Officer 2 Mario Padilla, who were armed with two M16 rifles and two caliber .45 pistols.

All of Washburn’s compatriots and the Filipino sailors returned safely but one of the Filipino seamen sustained a superficial bullet wound in the chest.

The group started their ascent early Tuesday on a difficult route along Barangay Sapang Bato at the back of Clark Field but decided to turn back due to the tortuous terrain at around noon, Padilla said.

Upon reaching a cratered area, they heard gunshots and were confronted by at least 30 men and women armed with high-powered rifles and grenade launchers on higher ground. A ricocheting bullet hit Filipino seaman Ruben Bautista, he added.

He said the attackers claimed they were NPA rebels and told the group to lie on the ground.

Five of their attackers, including two Aetas and an amazon approached the group and took the Filipinos’ firearms. The victims were told not to rise from the ground until after the attackers had fled, Padilla said.

After the attackers fled, the hikers noticed Washburn was missing. He was last seen at the tailend of the group since he washed his foot in a pool. His rubber slippers were found, indicating that he fled on bare feet.– With Marichu Villanueva, Aurea Calica, Paolo Romero