Cops foil kidnap of Indian trader; suspect nabbed

CAMP FLORENDO, La Union, Philippines  – A suspect allegedly belonging to a kidnapping syndicate based in Mindanao was arrested in Aringay town this province after police foiled an attempt to snatch an Indian trader from San Fernando City the other day. 

Chief Superintendent Franklin Bucayu, Ilocos regional police director, said suspect Rudy Santos, 32, was nabbed but his three other armed companions managed to escape after abandoning their getaway vehicle, a stolen blue Toyota car with license plate TTG 443.

Investigation showed that the suspects grabbed Indian businessman Mark Singh while he was alighting from his vehicle along the national highway in San Fernando City. 

“While trying to convince (Singh) to ride on the suspects’ car, the driver tried to scare him by showing a firearm tucked in his waist and a police buckle. However, the commotion caught the attention of bystanders, prompting the suspects to abandon him,” Bucayu said.

The suspects fled southbound when they sensed that Singh was calling for help.

Singh managed to seek the help of the Regional Intelligence Division whose chief, Senior Superintendent Mariano Luis Verzosa Jr., promptly alerted all police units along the national highway and ordered the immediate set-up of checkpoints, resulting in Santos’ arrest in Aringay.

A check with the Land Transportation Office showed that the stolen car used by the suspects was registered under the name of a certain Renato Tomas of Bantug, Nueva Ecija. – With Eva Visperas