After 2 years, still no lead in kidnap of Surigao banker

Camp Rafael Rodriguez, Libertad, Butuan City ,Philippines  – After more than two years in the kidnapping of Surigao banker Johnson Cuiting, the Philippine National Police yesterday claimed it still has no lead in the controversial abduction of the 50-year-old local trader.

During a press conference held at the PNP regional office here, PNP Caraga regional intelligence office head Senior Superintendent Dave Ombao said the continuing investigation is now in the hands of the Criminal Investigation Detection Group (CIDG) and the Surigao del Norte provincial police office headed by provincial police director Senior Superintendent Emmanuel Talento.

When asked by The STAR on the status of the continuing investigation if there are any leads, Ombao said, “we are conducting continuing investigation and because we have no new eyewitnesses except those who were present at the time Cuiting was kidnapped, we are still searching leads in the abduction of Mr. Cuiting.”

Ombao was Surigao del Norte police provincial director at the time Cuiting was kidnapped by armed men inside his plush subdivision home in Ceniza Heights in Surigao City on the evening of Jan. 7, 2009.

Ombao was said to have established close coordination with relatives of Cuiting especially the wife, Bliss Cuiting.

Earlier, Caraga PNP regional director Chief Superintendent Reynaldo Rafal told The STAR that he will form a special unit from the PNP Caraga police regional office who will conduct separate investigation apart from the investigation made by the Surigao del Norte provincial police office and the CIDG.

During the visit here of the representative of Josefa “Sef” Cuiting-Lam, private investigator Maximo “Loy” Ocampo who aired an appeal for the reinvestigation of his brother’s abduction, Rafal told Ocampo that a special investigation unit from the Caraga PNP will be formed apart from ordering Surigao del Norte police office to intensify investigation.

But when followed up later by The STAR, Rafal said he is busy and everybody is busy and that the reinvestigation is already going on.

Meanwhile, Josefa, sister of Cuiting, visited The STAR office recently to express appreciation on behalf of his client. The STAR assisted to schedule a meeting between her representative and Rafal to relay Josefa’s appeal for a reinvestigation.

Ocampo, representative of Hong-Kong-based Josefa, said his inquiries suggested that the residents of Surigao City have two differing opinions as regards the disappearance of Cuiting, now 52. The first was kidnap for ransom. The second was “kidnap me” in an attempt to resolve matters internal to the family.

Ocampo said Josefa is not after the persons involved in the abduction. If it was a kidnap-for-ransom and that negotiations had failed, Cuiting be dead by now. If he is already dead, Josefa would like to request for a retrieval of the body for proper burial.

If it was a “kidnap me,” Josefa would like to know what assistance, financial or otherwise, she could extend to her brother for him to surface and live a normal life.

Ocampo said that during the time of the negotiations for the ransom money, Josefa remitted from Hong Kong P3 million to a sister in Manila as contribution to the ransom money.

The rest of the money was to come from the Bank of Placer, where Cuiting was president. More than two months after the negotiations had failed, Josefa transferred the P3-million to her personal account in a Surigao bank ready for disbursement to anyone who would assist in locating Cuiting.