MANILA, Philippines - Police and military agents rescued a businessman from his kidnappers in Cainta, Rizal yesterday.
Four of the suspected kidnappers were killed in a shootout in two separate places, while a fifth suspect escaped.
Senior Superintendent Isagani Nerez, Police Anti-Crime and Emergency Response (PACER) chief, identified three of the four killed suspects as Antonio Manzonto Buke, Rodolfo Lim Arcilla, Ladel Bogayon.
The fourth casualty is yet to be identified, he added.
Nerez said his men found 30-year-old Orson Tan hogtied and blindfolded in a warehouse in San Andres, Cainta at about 3:45 a.m. after shooting two men guarding him.
One of the men was killed at the scene, while the other died after being taken to a nearby hospital, he added.
Nerez said authorities killed the two other suspected kidnappers in a shootout near Club Manila East in Taytay, Rizal.
Police found in the warehouse Tan’s Toyota Innova van, a caliber .45 pistol, and a caliber .38 revolver.
They also seized several cellular phones, including the one used to call Tan’s family to demand P20 million in ransom, he added.
Nerez said Tan was kidnapped while driving his Innova van at about 6:45 p.m. in Novaliches, Quezon City on Thursday.
Tan’s family sought PACER’s help after the suspects called up and demanded P20 million for his release, he added.
The suspects are probably members of a disbanded kidnap gang, Nerez said.
Meanwhile, Nerez said PACER is closely coordinating with the Armed Forces and the Chinese-Filipino community through the Movement for the Restoration of Peace and Order in monitoring kidnap gangs.
The community’s help is valuable in the fight against kidnapping, he added.
Nerez said PACER is also helping the Filipino-Indian community get organized against kidnapping.
The Filipino-Indian community has also been victimized by kidnap-gangs, he added.