Tsinoys laud drop in kidnap cases for 2008

The Chinese-Filipino community is considering 2008 as a banner year in the government’s anti-kidnapping campaign, with only nine kidnap-for-ransom cases reported since January.

The Police Anti-Crime and Emergency Response (PACER) reported that there were 24 kidnap-for-ransom cases reported in 2007.

PACER chief Senior Superintendent Leonardo Espina assured that all law enforcement measures are being undertaken to prevent kidnappings, mainly through manhunt and monitoring operations on individuals linked to kidnapping cases.

 “While we are yet to conclude that kidnapping is already a thing of the past, we can safely say that we have significantly reversed the previous trend of kidnapping over the past nine years,” Espina said.

Since 1999 to 2007, there was an average 54.6 kidnapping cases every year.

In a statement, William Ho, chairman of the Binondo-based Movement for the Restoration of Peace and Order (MRPO) said the country’s Chinese-Filipino community has been relieved of the threat of kidnapping, which has been a top peace and order concern of this particular sector.

“In our honest to goodness assessment, 2008 is a banner year in the government’s anti-kidnapping campaign, with only nine kidnapping-for-ransom cases reported since January,” Ho said.

Ho said the Chinese-Filipino community has expressed renewed confidence in the sincerity of law enforcers to stem kidnapping and other heinous crimes.

Ho also denied a rumor spread through text messages that kidnapping has been on the rise. He said the MRPO verified the allegations and found them to be false.

The number of kidnapping cases reached its peak in 2001, with 99 cases reported for the year. This had every wealthy Chinese family hire bodyguards for fear of being kidnapped.

PACER has arrested several kidnapping suspects involved in the nine kidnapping cases reported this year. Among their most successful cases are the rescue of bank executive Ramon Murillo and the arrest of 10 of his kidnappers; the rescue of Ka Kuen Chua, in which the police killed one kidnapper and arrested three others; and the arrest of two police officers, a former Cavite vice mayor and several other suspects involved in the kidnap-murder of a retired pilot last August.

”What is more important in all these solved cases is that our justice system has effectively established the certainty of punishment for kidnappers and other criminals,” Espina said.